Of kings and princes
by TomBydand
Summary: sequal to "kight warlock prince" arthur is king, and merlin is, prince? now together with their friends they must strive to forge a new albion, but they face foes and chalenges along the way. Merlin/ArthurBromance, Merlin/tristain oc slash
1. prolog

**sequal to "knight, warlock, prince." it would really help your brain if you read that first as this whole story is continued from that fic and is chockablock with oc's featured in it.**

** now i know what you are thinking:"what! W H A T ! ! ! ! but you said you wouldn't post anything yet!" rule one peeps the dr lies :D so yeah it wasn't entirely a lie, after this prolog it WILL be some time before i post the next bit. but i had finnished this and it was laying about not doing anything and i was bored of not posting lol **

**summery(might be a long one): at the end of 'knight warlock prince' uthur died protecting merlin and arthur, his last words "trust in merlin he knows" spured arthur on to offically name merlin as his brother. merlin now not only is a prince but his magic is widely accepted if not welcomed. he and arthur know what their destiny is, they know where they are supposed to end up thing is, its the gettign there that prooves troublesome. Morganna pendragon has been stripped of her name and title now a ragged traveller called morgan le fey she is weakend and has nothing, but this makes her dangerous and evenin her weakend state she already is plotting. with new allies and new enemies coming forward, the cold war of albion has started, it will only bring peace, or devistation. **

**i dont own merlin, i do own my OC's also there are charactors from the legand who appear/haventappeardyet in the show which i had already planned on writeing about i here in my own way so yes this is AU/AT(alternate timeline) but yes i dont own merlin.** **hope you like! **

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><p>Prologue<p>

Uthurs funeral was a strange affair the people of Camelot flocked to the court yard and the castle to pay their respects. it was a time of great sadness but there was a buzz about the city, a new king was to be crowned, Arthur the young man they had all come to love and respect, a prince who had all of his fathers beliefs but was willing to listen and learn from those who had something to teach, the prince who befriended a servant and fell in love with a maid. The people's prince. No more obvious was the change noticeable than when the regent allowed a tear to fall in front of his people and uttered the words "he made mistakes, but he was a good king, a good father, a good man, and the world will never fully comprehend what has been lost. I will strive to be a good king for you, I will be the greatest king the world will ever know, and I do it in your name father and for the love of Camelot." The people wept and rejoiced for here was a young king who had his fathers fighting spirit and unyielding courage and his mother's kindness. He would show mercy to those who earned it. The 'servant prince.' Stepped forward. "Uthur welcomed me. He knew was a dragon lord. He knew I was a peasant, he knew I was from Cenred's kingdom but he saw the trust and bond his son and I had and he embraced it, I know you are out there, hiding in the shadows, you people of magic, I know you wish to seen another pendragon dead. I command you to adhere to the dawn king truce. Give him a chance to be the king he means to be before you place the noose around his neck. Merlin's eyes burned gold and the air shivered with magic. "Your enemy is dead, at his end he accepted that in rare cases magic was not evil, you have a victory, let us mourn. If you don't then you will not only have the once and future king to fight." His voice was getting louder carried by magic, "you will face Emrys as well." He muttered a spell and a small wooden dragon he held in his palm sprung to life and settled on uthurs chest, to protect him in the afterlife.

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><p>Merlin sat in the empty physician's chambers, Gaius had been moved to one of the towers. The young warlock had never felt so powerless, Gaius had chosen his path. It hade saved his life but at such a great cost. "You must not dwell dear heart." Merlin looked up at the door and saw his mother looking tired. "We can not know how long your uncle will be in the deep sleep for. All we can do is make sure he is comfortable" Merlin sighed. "Has that been taken care of?" he asked her she smiled "oh my darling you can be vague have you not noticed my clothes?"<p>

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><p>Arthur rolled his eyes. "Merlin, my sister is disowned, my father dead, my cousin refuses to stake his rightful claim" he turned towards the young warlock. "You are my brother by blood. You are by law now a prince of Camelot. You are heir to the throne." Merlin shook his hand where the scar that marked them as blood brothers was, Arthur raised his eyebrow at the movement before laughing at his 'brother' "Merlin! You can't shake my blood out of your hand." Merlin glared at the king. "Fine but my mother doesn't need frills and finery to wear she likes being a peasant, I liked being a peasant."<p>

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><p>Arthurs smile turned sad. "Merlin we are brothers now, you can not be a servant or peasant any more and as for your mothers new wardrobe, my mother died at birth, my father died in my arms, my sister is a psychopath and the man who pretty much raised me in fathers absence, is in a magic induced coma. So excuse me for treating the only parental figure I have left to some nice clothes." Merlin bowed and left the room.<p>

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><p>"No" Gwaine said as he swung the sword. "Please?" Gwaine raised his shield blocking the blow before responding. "Merlin please leave me be! " he growled as he swung the sword more viciously watching the blue ripples spread from Merlin's wrist as the warlock's shield of magic blocked his strike. "But your mother was uthurs sister! You are a bona fide prince of Camelot, if you'd only step forward and stake your claim" Gwaine, was tired of this conversation, he was already uncomfortable being a knight, a noble, now Merlin was pestering him to become a royal. "For the last time sire, no!" Merlin went still so Gwaine guessed they were done training. "But you haven't seen the clothes he wants me to wear, the duties I have to attend!" Gwaine smirked. "Why do you think I'm so determined to avoid being a prince." His smile grew larger at the look of indignation on the prince's face. "Well if you must be a stubborn mule sir Gwaine" Merlin's eyes went gold and Gwaine felt the grass latch on to his feet trapping him, he went to protest but all that came out was a donkey's bray. Merlin winked at him wandered off.<p>

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><p>Gwen was stood next to her window smiling while Jane sat on a stool by her feet fixing the lady's hem while laughing hysterically. "Did he really trap him in the grass and give him a donkey bray?" Gwen asked the new arrival who had entered the room recounting the incident breathlessly having laughed herself sore. "Oh yes, Gwaine's face when I released him was priceless, he declared his undying love for me then ran down the tavern to calm his nerves." Bellanor was leaning against the bed post. "Well you could do worse, he is a prince" Gwen said with a calculated smile. "Not that he'll admit he is" she replied. "Could your Malcolm talk to him?" Bellanor asked Jane who preceded to stab herself with a needle and squeaked "what no not my Malcolm no what?" blushing furiously she looked up at Gwen who was now trying desperately to not laugh. Jane smiled weakly at her friend. "Shush you."<p>

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><p>Cenred's knuckles were white on his throne as he looked at the ragged woman standing in front of him. "You must bide your time my friend. With out morgouse I'm not strong enough to aid you yet, or you me." He growled. "The degenerates father murdered the woman I love his vile offspring will pay" Morgan sighed. "I have been stripped of my power, name and anonymity. I dare not tread within Camelot's borders, I take a risk even being here." Cenred looked at her, she looked sickly thin and pale but he could see the magic, the power bubbling inside her. "Surely he poses no threat to you?" he said standing up, and walking towards her. "You did not see the fury in his eyes." Now he was close to her he saw she was shaking with fear. "Arthur is no threat to you." He said firmly. She looked him in the eye. "Not Arthur. Merlin, his eyes" she shuddered "his eyes haunt my dreams."<p>

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><p>Tristain felt the tears flow as the sword pressed against his neck. "I had a right to know!" the force behind the words shook his bones, "how was I supposed to tell you! Tell Arthur!" he shouted back. His otherworldly blue eyes full or remorse. "oh hi Merlin, Arthur, by the way my evil witch of a mother, who cursed my sister, is also the woman who got queen Igrain killed and who you killed Merlin, thanks for that by the way." he said, his words dripped with sarcasm. "I had a right to know" Merlin repeated, his eyes glowing gold moments before the air froze and Tristain's armour cracked under the change in temperature. Tristain nodded and apologised again, he reached out to touch Merlin but the prince flinched away and walked away. Tristain placed a hand to the cut on his neck before he walked in the opposite direction.<p>

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><p>"We haven't heard the last of Morgan." Merlin said looking across the table at his blood brother. "You said you banished her a long way away." Arthur said puzzled, usually he would have scolded Merlin for bringing up the subject of his sister, but he could tell Merlin was tired and in no state to be shouted at. "I did but I left her the amulet required to teleport, she is likely to visit her old ally Cenred even if its to tell him to tread carefully. You've said it your self Cenred isn't one to act unless he can be certain things will most likely go his way. They only killed your father because they separated the two of us and distracted your knights, and even that didn't go to plan. They hadn't counted on the king knowing and tolerating my magic. The fact I could openly protect him gave him the chance he needed to kill morgouse" Merlin sighed, "she is likely more angry and furious than she has ever been but now she has the blood guard to follow her orders, its likely she may try and send them in to deal with us." Arthur took a sip from his tankard. "You know I think I preferred it when you were just a bumbling servant" he smiled weakly. "Well its your own fault, you're the one who decided it would be a good idea to make me your 'brother' and prince."<p>

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><p>Bellanor sat next to her brother on the highest roof of the citadel, she knew he came here where no one with out magic could reach when he wanted to be alone. It amused her that he had forgotten he had a twin sister who had magic as well. "Have you spoken to Tristain?" she asked quietly, he harrumphed and shrugged his shoulders before shaking his head. "I loved his sister, I burnt her body out in the lake, and I killed his mother. Every time I see him at the moment I'm reminded of the sadness of Freya, and the horror of what nimueh did, so determined to bring about the birth of the once and future king that she tricked uthur and Igrain into using magic to ensure he was born. She started the purge and then she ran away and let the chaos happen. She cursed her own daughter, she killed Gaius so I killed her." Bellanor could feel the tears coming. "Every time I look at him recently, I'm filled with unwavering sadness, guilt and rage." Bellanor pulled her brother into a hug.<p>

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><p>"You're not mad are you? I wouldn't ask but." Lancelot and Galahad were standing in the council chamber facing King Arthur, prince Merlin and Hunith. Arthur sat at the head of the table with the other two sitting either side of him. "Ealdor is a safe haven nowadays, as it was in the purge." Hunith spoke after getting a nod form Arthur. "I could get her work and a home there for now, until things are more settled." Galahad spoke up "ealdor is in Cenred's kingdom. I wouldn't want to risk my sister's safety, she is the only mother I have ever know, as Lancelot is the closest thing I will ever have to a father." Merlin spoke this time. "I am the most powerful being of magic ever to live, one day my power will over shadow that of even the great dragon. Yet my mother managed to hide me in plain sight within Cenred's kingdom, ealdor may be in his kingdom but it is off the beaten track and close to Camelot's borders, I could easily place an enchantment on something of hers that would call for help if ever she were in danger." Galahad went to speak back before Arthur spoke up finally "Galahad you are one of my knights and the adopted son of one of the few men I trust without hesitation, I would never under any circumstances allow anyone you care for to come to harm, if they did, the hounds of hell themselves would not stop me form avenging them" Galahad nodded "of course sire I meant no disrespect," he bowed and left the room.<p>

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><p>"Come on! Arthur it will be amazing. You have done the mandatory two months leader ship. It is time for you to be coroneted properly" Arthur sighed, looking at his father's tomb. "I know but wearing the crown, its slamming the door on father, on his reign. He was a good king." He took a shuddering breath. Placing a gloved hand on the tomb he whispered something under his breath. "He was a good king. You will be better, you have his determination, his conviction, his strength and steadfast beliefs, but you have your mothers kindness, your own mind, and my." Merlin didn't finish his sentence, he didn't need to. Arthur still suffered 'headaches' now and then when the miniscule fragment of Merlin's magic that was in him, in his blood, would come forward. He couldn't cast spells he didn't have visions, he couldn't perform magic, but he heard it, the whispers of magic, he senses things and senses then with such abrupt force that his head felt like it was on fire. "You will be free Merlin, all of your kind, I will grant them amnesty I will repeal fathers laws, you are the light to my sister's shadow, the love to her hate, you deserve to be seen, and heard. You deserve to speak openly and freely to those with magic, help them to see that there must be balance."<p>

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><p>"I will kill you all!" the man wielded two serrated swords and was swinging them at the gathered knights. He wore the crest of the blood guards, he was flanked by four more. Arthur was about to draw his own sword when he felt a change in the air pressure and Tristain came flying over their heads and in one swift move took out three of the four. He turned to the two remaining enemy. "I am Tristain son of nimueh, lord of the lakes, I stand by Camelot's side, and I stand by Emrys's side! Leave now or face the consequences. Remind your master, ten of us defeated his ten thousand. Ask him if he really want to fight us without his pet sorceress." The two enemies turned and ran. Tristain turned round trying to look cool, the effect was ruined by Merlin running forward and lifting him up in a hug like he was a dainty maiden. The others gathered burst out laughing, Arthur calmly looked forward. "Mer-lin, put my knight down. Now, you dollop head." The king's tone just made everyone laugh more especially Merlin.<p>

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><p><strong>so? anygood? intrigued to reade more? coment and review if you'd like. like i said, after this prolog it will be a while before i post the next chapter. hey, crazy sugestion but while you wait for the next chapter why dont you read the prequal! (why yes that was shameless selfpromotion i appologise.) anyhoo! how are you all finding the new series? exciting huh! agrivane appeares later in this fic, can you keep a secret? in my head he isn't arthurs uncle, shhh, tell no one heheheheheh. also, dyslexic atempting to write so any gramatical or spelling errors that have slipped past, sorry about that. <strong>


	2. A Dawn Of Greatness

**hello no you are not going mad. this is the next chapter. spooky right? so um yes. this is a sequal to knight, warlock, prince. so it would probably help if you read that first. so if you are readign this chapter you have probably read the prolog but just in case quick recap. uthur wiht his dieing breath accepted merlin and his magic, arthur is now king and merlin, his blood brother, a makeshift prince, morganna has been banished for her part in uthurs death at the end of the privious story. merlin has been joined in camelot by his long lost sister, what follows is the contunueing adventures of our gang as they try and adjust to their new roles.**

**also, i dont own merlin (bah humbug) this story (not this chapter) will have occasional gore and mentions of dificult subjects in places hence the rating. some things in the rest of this story may be confusing so i'll try and clarify a couple of things at the bottom of this.**

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><p>a dawn of greatness<p>

Arthur was pacing his chambers erratically. Gwen was standing to one side patiently her maid Ellen was standing by the door her head bowed in respect. If anyone looked closely, they would see she was shaking. Among the maids it had been widely accepted that prince Arthur was a very handsome man, most maids couldn't be with in twenty foot of him with out blushing, as well as that every servant knew of the lady Gwen, she was their idol, a servant who befriended the once lady Morganna and whose voice would always be heard by the prince, her love and devotion was such that king uthur himself saw to it that she was made a noble. After nearly a year of being Gwen's maid she had seen both at their best and at their worse. But the fact remained that Arthur was still extremely handsome, but at the moment her head wasn't bowed to hide a blush, or out of respect, it was to hide the fact she was trying not to laugh as Gwen calmly and repeatedly scolded Arthur for scuffing his new boots and creasing his ceremonial clothes. She already sounded like an exasperated wife.

Gwen sighed. "For goodness sake my love, stop pacing!" she shouted. Arthur stumbled to a halt. "Sorry your right I just have all this extra energy I need to work off." He said with an apologetic shrug. It was at this moment that Merlin came bursting into the room waving a piece of parchment, hew tripping over himself trying to keep up with his master. "What is this? Today is your coronation, not mine!" he flapped the paper about to emphasise his point. Arthur stood there blinking before he burst out laughing. Hew quietly made his way to stand next to Ellen, he glanced at her briefly and saw her struggling not to laugh, he raised an eyebrow at her before rolling his eyes. The two of them standing quietly in the corner while Arthur and Merlin bickered with Gwen acting as referee, was a common occurrence for the two servants.

"Ah Merlin you got my letter then? Good, good. Is that what you're wearing? Didn't you see the ceremonial clothes I sent for you?" Arthur was clearly trying not to laugh now. "I am not getting crowned today! Its your coronation!" Arthur chuckled "if I am to be king the kingdom will need a prince, a crowned prince." Merlin sighed. "Take Gwaine then! He's your cousin!" Gwen laughed and Arthur answered. "He is my tavern loving cousin who has no wish to be royalty, yet, he is still getting used to being a noble. One will of course award him his rightful place by my side." Merlin smiled thinking he had won the argument. "But not until he is ready." Merlin slumped. "And you think I am? Ready?" Gwen sat herself on the trunk at the base of Arthur's bed, and leant forward interested to see what Arthur would say.

"Of course you are, you have accepted that it is your destiny to stand by my side protecting me from what I can not fight. You are Emrys I am the once and future king." Arthur stepped forward laying a hand on Merlin's forearm, he looked the warlock in the eye. "It is you and me brother, side by side until the end." It was said with such sincerity that the previously gigglesome servants went totally still and Gwen found she couldn't breath. "You called me brother" Merlin said eventually in a quiet voice. Arthur smiled at the young man in front of him. "From this day forth you are. Not through birth but, we are two sides of the same coin brother. Our souls are twins." Merlin laughed.

"You called me it again" Arthur laughed with him this time. "What can I say I enjoy calling you brother, what are you going to do about it Broth-er" Gwen giggled when Arthur said brother the way he normally said Merlin. Merlin raised an eyebrow. "You and me side by side, soul mates? What does your lady love have to say about that? Surely it is the wife who should be the soul mate." Gwen skipped to her feet and glided over to kiss Merlin on the cheek. "I've always known your souls were twins that you belonged side by side. You take his right side I'll take the left." She stepped back before winking at Merlin "besides I like the thought of you being my brother in law some day." She curtseyed and left the room followed by her maid.

Hew stepped forward ready to follow any orders Merlin had for him he was about to ask Merlin if there was anything he needed to do when Ellen poked her head round the door. "The lady Gwen asked me to tell you hurry up sires, she says it wouldn't do to miss your own ceremonies" she bowed her head respectfully and disappeared again. Hew muttered something under his breath and dismissed himself. Merlin turned to Arthur. "Do I really have to wear the outfit?" he asked with disdain. "Yes Merlin. Don't worry, I'll never make you wear it again, I'll let you wear anything you want, hell I'll even let you wear a big pointy hat if that's your prerogative." Merlin growled at the regent "don't tempt me, a nice big pointy hat would be a good thing to hit you with, brother" with that he hastened out of the chamber.

"Stop fidgeting sire," Merlin glared at hew, "sorry, stop fidgeting my lord." Merlin smiled, he still refused to be called sire by his servant but had relented and conceded to being referred to as M'lord when they were in public or hew was addressing him formally. "Its uncomfortable I fail to see what was wrong with my normal clothes." He said as he tried to use his magic to sense what was through the door. "M'lord your normal clothes are just slightly cleaner nicer version of what you wore as a servant" "and?" hew laughed at his master's retort. "And today is he day you become crown prince, it is mandatory for you to wear what you are wearing." Merlin sighed defeated. "I brought you your ceremonial sword" hew said in an overly bright tone. "Is that for me to fall on" Merlin replied absentmindedly. "I hope not" his servant answered with a slight smile, he had heard from others of the conversation Arthur and Merlin had had a few years ago. Merlin laughed quietly "those are my words" he said, hew nodded as he fastened the sword and scabbard around Merlin's waist. "Yes they are, I believe you then said something about destinies being troublesome things, something about choosing paths. Well this is the path you and the king chose." Merlin nodded. "When did you get so smart?" "I read one of your books M'lord" they smiled at each other. Merlin liked having Hew as a servant, he was the kind of servant Merlin had been, unafraid to speak his mind when needed but willing to quietly observe from the back ground as well. "Right well, now is the day it changes this is it hew, this is the dawn of Albion, and you are a part of it." Merlin straightened up and stepped to the door, waiting for it to open. He herd the chant of long live the king and he and hew joined in.

Arthur looked behind him, he hadn't seen Merlin since the morning, it felt odd not having him here but duty and tradition stated that the king be corrinated alone and separate to any prince. It meant Merlin would miss the coronation. As the door opened for him he realised something, Merlin would miss a shiny crown placed on his head but would witness an entire reign after that, by his side as his brother. He smiled as he walked down the long throne room towards Geoffrey of Monmouth. He knelt down in front of the thrones. "Do you solemnly swear to protect the people of this land and do everything in your power to keep them safe" "I solemnly swear to do so."

"Do you solemnly swear to rule with compassion and strength and to up hold the laws of the land" "I solemnly swear to do so." Arthur could feel his heart pounding hard and fast he realised he was holding his breath as Geoffrey finished.

"Then by the power vested in me I pronounce you Arthur, king of Camelot." The crown was placed on his head and he rose to his feet turning to look out at his people, a chorus of "long live the king!" broke out and he smiled as he saw Gwen standing in the front row with his special squad of knights cheering him on.

When the cheers died down he held up a hand in acknowledgement. "My lords, my ladies, my people, my friends, I thank you, and I promise to strive to be the king you deserve." The room went entirely silent. "my sister, would seek to enslave you, my father died protecting you, there was a time I feared this day for I knew I would have no family left to give me council." The crowd was awed by his humble and frank words this was the first time any had heard a royal say such things. Arthur smiled. "But then a man came to Camelot and he showed me, when your family is small and getting smaller you make one from your friendships. And so, my first act as king is to present to you, prince Merlin!" as he said this a murmur spread through the room as people craned their necks to look to the entrance when the door opened.

Merlin stepped forward as hew slipped in behind him unnoticed and worked his way to the side of the room. Merlin wore chainmail with a vibrant red tunic underneath his trousers were the blackest back and he wore polished boots that reached mid-calf, he wore a cape with the pendragon crest on and had a ceremonial sword fastened to his waist, the scabbard of which was engraved with a mix of oak leaf, ivy, and druidic symbols denoting protection and wisdom he looked, regal. Arthur smiled as he saw Merlin stride towards him in full pendragon regalia, looking every bit the prince he was. Merlin slowed as he reached the thrones. He knelt down in front of Arthur, earning an amused smile from the king, as he used magic to make his cape fall perfectly.

"Do you swear to defend the people of this land." Arthur asked as a rod was brought to him "I swear to do so" Merlin answered and was handed the golden rod. "and do you swear to do so with honour and respect for all" 'I swear to do so" Merlin uttered only now realising what was about to happen, the slim silvery banded crown was placed on his head, he noticed a marble like material inlayed in the crown that seamed to glow in the sunlight, if he though the surprises were over for the day he was mistaken, for Arthur then said the words that changed everything forever. "Then arise, prince Merlin pendragon vanguard, brother of the king." There was a shocked gasp through out the room, none gathered had known how Merlin would be referred to, Gwen squealed with delight as her brother pulled her into a hug laughing happily others cheered, and then Gwaine looked across at Tristain and in unison they shouted "god bless the prince!" the call was taken up by others and soon the whole throne room was shouting it. Merlin moved and stood to Arthur's right hand side, his friend, his right hand man, his prince, his brother. He smiled when he saw hew pass a clean handkerchief to Hunith who was sobbing happy tears, it was done she had done it, she had raised her son and kept him safe, she had made the prophesy come to pass, her son was Emrys and now, now she would see what the once and future king could truly achieve with Merlin at his side.

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><p><strong>so? hi how you all doing? lovely weather we're having isn't it. hope you liked the chapter. some of you will have guessed what it is on merlins crown but the rest of you will find out within the next couple of chapters. ok to clarify things:<strong>

**arthur: king of camelot. 'the king'**

**merlin: crowned prince etc. "the prince' etc**

**morganna: morgan. 'the witch' **

**merlins sister: Bellanor. **

**thats about it for now i think um OH! also, merlin is in a relation ship with sir Tristain (no not that one, the other one, what no the other other one) so yes this is slash, but hopefully even of you aren';t a huge fan of it it is gentle enough for you to enjoy everything else that is happening around it. next chapter up at some point this week. probably...**

**also, i am dyslexic so it is possible some spelling and gramma mistakes have escaped my notice, i do appologise. **

**reviews are wonderful aren't they? they are like little drops of sunshine, even the negitive ones are like manure to fertilise my muse-tree. so do please review if you'd like...**


	3. A New King

**hullo, chapter two, tiny little nugget of a chapter. bigger chapter coming tomorrow or the day after. however one very important plot point is introduced this chapter! **

**i don't own merlin, **

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><p>a new king<p>

Arthur was sure he looked like a buffoon. Here in the council chambers surrounded by his closest knights, members of the council and the council's inner circle, watching prince Merlin talk animatedly to one of the more conservative members of his fathers, of his council. He just couldn't help the huge grin that had spread across his face. He heard a quiet clearing of throat to his left and rolled his eyes and put on a fake smile, preparing to talk to yet another bootlicking council member wanting to ingratiate themselves to the new king. His smile turned genuine when he saw Geoffrey of Monmouth standing there. "lord Monmouth how are you, thank you so much for calming my nerves earlier" just before the ceremony Arthur had been a bundle of nerves but with just a few words the man now standing next to him had calmed him down by telling him that uthur had been much the same. "I live to serve sire" he said bowing. Before he could help himself Arthur uttered the word "really?" he looked at the court visor and felt a wave of gratitude as the older man replied with a straight face. "I live to serve as long as you leave me and my books alone." Arthur laughed. "I promise the books are safe" the older man raised his eyebrow at the king "no really they are, in fact perhaps we should add that to the kings oath "I solemnly swear to uphold and protect the knowledge held by books" both men were now smiling sharing this new private joke. "And do you? Solemnly wear to uphold and protect the knowledge held by books?" Arthur saluted the older man before looking him directly in the eyes, "I solemnly swear to do so" Geoffrey nodded. "Then I live to serve, just keep the prince away from my library, last time he put all the books back in the wrong place and it took me a whole day to correct it, the time before he released a goblin! Give him his own library"

Arthur laughed. "I think I may. But you are being far too casual M'lord which means you are trying to ease me into something, just tell me." The librarian looked a little taken aback at the change in tone and acute awareness of the new king. "Very well, But you must promise to remain calm" Arthur raised an eyebrow of his own. "Why?" the librarian took a deep breath before continuing. "Well you see after we discussed you naming Merlin as your prince and 'adoptive' brother I did some research. The vanguard dynasty was the highest ranking of the dragon lord families and clan. They were princes among lords, they were the wisest and most powerful. No doubt that is why one fathered the great Emrys. But I'm getting side tracked the point is. Many years ago one of the lesser sons married a princess, he became king and she became queen, he forged a trident in the dragon's breath and his wife used magic to gather water from the lake of Avalon." He paused thinking how to continue. "They had two sons one younger and one older. To the elder brother they gave the trident to the younger the vial of water but they were not a normal kingdom. It was the younger who took the throne, his older brother remained prince and protector." He looked at Arthur to see if any of this was sinking in. it looked like it might be, "their grandson was the fisher king. His brother died and left him the trident it was this tragedy that caused the perilous lands to bond to his magic which poisoned then and eradicated their true name form history." He waited to see if Arthur would respond. "I claimed his trident, but Merlin has told me the fisher king was still alive to drop it and surrender it to me. He gave." The king stopped and shot a look at Merlin who was now laughing at something Galahad had said while Gwaine stood with his arm draped over the prince's shoulders, Tristain and Percival were standing to the side of them doing an impression of Merlin and Gwaine.

He turned back to Geoffrey "he gave the vile to Merlin and the trident to me when we were on our parallel quests, Merlin had the eye of the phoenix. He must have given it to the fisher king and released him. Oh god, Merlin is king of the perilous lands. Is that what you are trying to tell me?" the librarian shrugged. "Before he was a lord he had no claim, but now he is a crowned prince, he has a very definite claim to the throne of the perilous lands, yes." Arthur sighed. "We should tell him" he said sounding tired. The librarian looked sombre "sire, he has only just been officially named as royalty, it would be better if we leave him to become accustomed before we spring it on him that he is ruler of the perilous lands." Arthur sighed again. "I suppose, what do we do in the meantime?" he asked quietly as another council member walked past. "I'd spend the time working out weather you want it to remain a separate entity with Merlin as king, you would have to release him from your side for that. Or do you want to make it a principality of Camelot." Arthur nodded and the librarian walked off. He looked at his friend, no, his brother, and smiled when he saw Merlin crouch down on bended knee to shake hands with the youngest child of one of the assembled lord Merlin uttered a quiet spell and a leaf he was carrying started flapping above the child's outstretched hand, Merlin smiled as the young girl giggled and chased the flapping leaf around her parents legs. Here in this room everyone knew of Merlin's magic and everyone knew of uthurs dying wish, that Merlin and Arthur return what little untainted magic there was, to the land. Here in this room Merlin was safe and seeing the joy in Merlin's eyes at the simple act of entertaining a child made Arthur even more determined that people like him would one day soon feel safe where ever they were in Camelot and hopefully Albion, even if he had to conquer all of Albion to ensure it.

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><p><strong>BOOM! ok, ok. who saw that coming? who? any of you? yup arthur was not the new king of the title, also, now that merlin is finally not hiding his magic, arthur is hiding merlins kingship a secret lol i love that irony. <strong>

**aslo who else loves merlin playing with kids useing his magic. next chapter is up soon. **


	4. A council of Kings

**new chapter! what! wheeeeeeeeeeee. sorry about the delay, life as it does decided to crash the internet. but the exciting news is this chapter WILL be followed by the next tomorrow or saturday at the latest. **

**this chapter is a bridging chapter, next chapter something exciting happens, but to get to that you will hav to read this one :D **

**i don't own merlin, but i intend on befriending someone who does lol **

**hope you like the chapter, read on good people...**

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><p>a council of kings<p>

Arthur was nervous. It had been a week since he repealed the law against magic, allowing 'acceptable' magic back. The wording of the new law was important, as it was it sounded like magic was still assumed to be bad but those conservative members of the court and council had it wrong. The assumption of the king and prince was the complete opposite. Arthur looked across at Merlin who was back wearing his 'normal' clothes but had compromised and was wearing his crown, he smiled at the prince who was carrying his Sidhe staff, and it had also been a week since Arthur appointed his new brother as the court sorcerer. "Arthur you need to relax, they will be here soon, none of them can challenge you, the dawn king truce states so, very clearly" Merlin said with out even turning to look at his surrogate brother.

The dawn king truce was a truce, a law, that stretched all the way back to when the kingdoms were first created, it stated that no rival kingdom could attack a new monarch until they had completed their first year of rule. To attack with in that year was seen as cowardly and weak. Where is the challenge, the glory, in defeating a foe who hasn't found their footing yet. Much better to humiliate an established king, or in rare occurrences, queen. If you broke the truce there was a bylaw that said you had to face judgement form the other kings of Albion. A judgement, that had so far, been met with the swift killing of the offending king.

Arthur smiled when the first two rival monarchs to arrive were Elena and Odin. Odin glared at Arthur but shook hands with Merlin. Making it clear that while he had welcomed the idea of a truce, through his ward Gwen marrying Arthur, he still did not like the man. He would be civil, but never friendly. Arthur nodded in acknowledgement of the king. Elena came gliding over to him gracefully. "Pendragon! It's good to see you" she hugged him but it was no longer and awkward hug but an easy one. Arthur hugged her back. "It is good to see you too my dear friend." Though the two had rarely seen each other since the disastrous attempt to get them to marry, they had kept up a correspondence through letters and had become as firm a friends as their fathers had been. She turned to Merlin. "My how we have risen to greatness my lord" she said a playful grin on her face. Merlin tilted his head at her a smile gracing his lips. "It is not I who has risen, the rest f you have mealy caught up with me. Queen Elena it is a pleasure to see you again." She smiled and allowed him to kiss her hand before she went and took her seat upon one of the thrones her eyes drifted to the rock in the middle of the clearing where she and the other monarchs would gather she marvelled at the craftsmanship of the wooden thrones that had been carved out of tree stumps each throne had the crest of the royal who would be seated in it. Her lady in waiting stepped forward and muttered something in the queen of Ulwin's ear. Arthur turned to Merlin. "Well" he muttered. Merlin stood there with his eyes closed. "Odin's guard has magic, as does Elena's lady in waiting. The guard has a strong sense of defence and the lady in waiting appears to have a proclivity for misdirection. It is as we hoped both have brought with them a person with magic, for this to work though the rest need do the same."

Arthur sighed. "Remind me why that is again?" Merlin went slightly red and muttered something. "I'm sorry brother I didn't quite catch that." Merlin harrumphed and repeated, "If the rest don't bring some one with magic then my own casting of the spell will over power them all and will look suspicious." Arthur laughed but was secretly glad to have confirmation that the prince stood beside him was powerful enough to defeat most with out even trying. It used to be the thought would scare him but now, like his father he realised there was a reason Merlin had that power. He would never intentionally throw his weight around unless it was absolutely necessary and unavoidable. "Well so far we are two for two, we can assume Aliened will bring Trickler" Merlin's eyes lit up at that thought. "No Merlin you can't pick on him using magic no matter how awful and slimy he is." Merlin sighed rolling his eyes. He nodded towards the edge of the clearing where Aliened and Olaf were arriving out of the tree line. "Olaf's guard has magic." Merlin muttered under his breath. He took a step back as the two new arrivals moved towards Arthur, "play nice" the king said to the warlock as Aliened walked towards them a fake smile plastered on his face.

"Arthur, king Arthur, it is wonderful to see you again, and the servant prince. My, my, how we've moved up in the world, Martin was it?" His tone was light but the insult and accusation was there. Merlin smiled and extended his hand to be shaken. "It's Merlin actually, but you can call me lord Emrys" his grin was wide and goofy but his eyes were cold as winter, Trickler let out a whimper. "I see your sorcerer has heard of me, good, good always nice to meet one of my people." again Merlin kept his tone light but the message was there for all to hear, 'I am prince of magic, your servants true loyalties lie with me now' he released the king s arm and moved across to Olaf who had finished talking to Arthur. "King Olaf, M'lord it is wonderful to see you, tell me has Vivian been released form her enchantment?" Olaf huffed, and pulled himself up to his full height which was still shorter than Merlin, "unfortunately yes, a stable boy kissed her releasing her from its clutches, I had him exiled of course" Merlin smiled at that, it was just such an Olaf way of dealing with the situation. "ah, such a shame but at least she is clear of mind once more and you can set about finding a more suitable husband." Olaf nodded and looked Merlin up and down, Arthur held in a laugh as he realised Olaf was working out weather Merlin would be a suitable husband for his daughter, he appeared to be planning something when Elena came gliding over and linked arms with Merlin "Milord's I had wondered if I could borrow the prince, I am unfamiliar with the area and require an escort." All three kings looked at her bemused for a second before nodded she smiled and thanked them moving off.

"So he's courted for already" they heard Olaf say disappointedly as they headed off to the side of the clearing where the glass turned to gravel and then the lake of the water. "I'm sorry I'm sure that was terribly improper of me, but it looked like Olaf was about to prince nap you and claim you for his daughter" Elena muttered as she walked slowly along the small beach with Merlin whose eyes were focused on the lake. It took him a few moments to realise he was supposed to reply. "You have never been a conventional princess milady, why stop when you become queen, it is your beautiful uniqueness that has drawn Arthur to cherish your friendship." He paused a moment before continuing. "I apologise for my vagueness today, this is the lake where I laid to rest the only woman I have ever loved, and I now love her brother just as much if not more. This is a difficult place for me to be." Elena nodded. She had suspected as much, Arthur had mentioned in passing of Merlin's relation ship with one of his most trusted knights, and of that knights true parenthood, the knight was the son of nimueh, the enchantress who caused the death of Arthurs mother, the enchantress who Merlin killed. "I am not just Arthur's friend, I would like to be your friend as well Merlin, and my lady in waiting would like to be your minion." She said the last bit in jest and Merlin smiled turning towards her.

"Well I could always use more minions, but I'd rather have her as an ally. The rest of the kings and queens have arrived, it is time" she nodded at his words she hadn't bee told what the plan was but she knew it had to be something big. All of the king's or queens of the seven kingdoms were present, there was an empty throne for the periless lands where once the fisher king would have sat. Even Cenred was there accompanied by a scared and intimidating sorcerer.

"Merlin, be ready to call them" Arthur muttered to his blood brother when Merlin came to stand next to him, Merlin nodded. Satisfied that everyone was settled Arthur stood up from his throne of oak and stepped towards the middle of the clearing. "My lords, my ladies, it is good to see you all. As you all know the dawn king tradition states that if he so chooses a dawn king may summon his fellow rulers to a council of kings. I understand your weariness, the last time such a council was called the dawn king tried to kill several of you" his gaze shifted ever so slightly towards Cenred and his guard, his rival king was looking back bored. "that will not happen today, however I fear some of you will not like what is to be discussed today" he glanced at Merlin who nodded. "Even in his ignorance and hatred of magic my father knew of certain prophecies, one in particular I am sure you all paid attention to, the prophecy of the once and future king and Emrys." His words were met by silence each companion of the visiting kings allowing their eyes to drift towards Merlin, Emrys.

"The man stood next to me is known as Emrys by the druids, he has had it confirmed to him by two oracles and powerfully magic beings that I, Arthur pendragon, am the once and future king." Arthur's words were met with several different people shouting and yelling and debating, Arthur tried to get them to settle but it would not work, Merlin picked a tiny vial of water form inside his tunic and subtly removed the cork at the top. The water inside swung to one side of the vial and then soared through the air towards the beach, no one noticed it rejoin the waters, everyone was still trying to talk over each other, Merlin leant across to Arthur. "Cover your ears 'brother' it is time" Arthur barely had time to protect his ears before in a voice shuddering with raw power Merlin called out to Kilgarrah. "_**Dragon! I call to you, come out of hiding and join our council of kings, your kin commands it!**_" there was a shift in the air pressure and suddenly the great dragon came swooping down from the sky and landed cutting a gouge into the soil with his wings and they settled in against him water from the lake slipped into the gouge which had reached the edge of the water. "Freya lady of the lake I call upon your wisdom" Merlin whispered.

The collected kings and queens let out surprised gasps as a strangely beautiful young woman surged out of the water and stood on its surface. "Emrys, it is good to see you," she said in a voice as silky as the water she had just risen from. "Arthur, I am sorry for your loss, I'm sure loosing both your parents is probably hard, I wouldn't know I never liked mine" Arthur bowed his head and looked off to his side where Tristain had been hidden until now, the king gave a nod and his knight ran forward and embraced his sister for the first time in a long time, after a moment they moved apart. "Kilgarrah what are your views on Camelot?" the dragon looked each of the gathered humans in the eye. "I hold no love for it, the only thing stopping me attacking it is loyalty to the last dragon lord Merlin, and respect for you." Arthur smiled, that was the answer he had been hoping for. "And why do you respect me when my family and I have done you nothing but wrong?" Arthur asked the dragon. Kilgarrah tilted his head thinking it over. Before replying. "I was told a son born of magic to a hateful father would see the light and love of magic and bring about the dawn of a united Albion, the boy would be the once and future king, the boy would be called Arthur pendragon. The druids left that last part out of the prophecy, they knew it would cause a war to eradicate your bloodline thus placing the title on another's head." Arthur nodded and thanked Kilgarrah who bowed his head.

Freya now stepped forward. "I am Freya lady of the lake. I used to be mortal, I used to be cursed, I was hunted and imprisoned my mortal form was killed by Arthur pendragon, my mother was nimueh, the one who killed his mother, I have not great love for the man. But now I am guardian of the lakes and oracle of magic, I know all I see all" her tar black eyes settled on Aliened and then Cenred. "You are the once and future king, it can not be denied." She bowed her head and disappeared back into the water. Kilgarrah waited a few seconds before launching himself up into the air.

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><p><strong>so? who know's what will happen next chapter! i'm sure some of you will know what is about to happen, but hopefully next chapter will hold some surprises for y'all. <strong>


	5. a stone and sword

**yo! hullo tahdah! another new chapter, i really hope you like this chapter, as something majour happens that sets things in motion. **

**i don't own merlin, he is not mine. OC's are.**

**read! enjoy! coment and review huzzah...**

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><p>a stone and sword.<p>

"I am the once and future king. I will rule all of Albion, however. I would rather it comes to be through trade and allegiances. I will gain your kingdoms through war if there is no other option." Caerleon spoke for the first time, his gravely northern accent rumbling out across the clearing. "The dragon is allied to your prince, don't think we didn't notice the dragon shell fragment in his crown, and the lady is clearly also allied to at least one of your knights. How do we know they told the truth, Cenred and I were both born of magic to fathers who mistrusted it. Elena was a changeling, even she could be the 'once and future queen' how do you plan on proving it!" the other kings nodded Elena just shot a glare at the older king, she did not like being reminded that the Sidhe had tried to use her, had mutilated her body for their own gain.

Tristain stepped into the middle of the circle. "there is a spell that can be placed on an object so that only a king can wield it!" he shouted as he climbed up on to the rock, he pointed at the rock he stood on. "You each bought a magically gifted person with you, they will tell you these are accurate and powerful symbols of the old religion." He unsheathed his sword. "this sword belonged to my mother it was crafted using dark magic, it steals the life and strength of any non magic person it cuts, it is no friend of Arthur or any of you, it is the sword of nimueh." He nodded and Merlin spoke the words of a spell his eyes connecting with the other magic users. Each one started chanting the same spell. "_**Take me up cast me down I shall not move 'till the king is found. My king your king, a king bring us together. the king, our king, a ruler now and forever"**_ each of them were focused on making the sword choose their own king, Merlin was focussed instead on securing the spell he only put a little effort into thinking about Arthur. As they finished chanting Tristain plunged the sword into the stone and Merlin suddenly found himself panicking, if the sword chose another then it and Tristain were duty bound to protect that king.

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><p>Merlin walked to the centre of the clearing again. "Each ruler will have three attempts to pull it out of the stone, even once it has bee removed the king who removed it must place it back in and wait until the others have tried again. Only after that third rotation will it be confirmed who the once and future king is. We all cast the spell there is no bias." He said pre-empting the accusation which he saw was about to be made. None of the men moved so Elena stepped forward and took hold of the sword earning a couple of laughs from the men, unsurprisingly the sword did not budge. She climbed down from the rock gracefully with the aid of her companion. She turned to the gathered kings. "Well I guess that rules out the 'once and future queen' theory." She said smiling. Caerleon stepped forward and strode confidently up on the rock and with all his considerable might pulled at the sword, it did not budge. Aliened was the next to try again, even with magical help from Trickler the sword stuck, if anything it sunk further into the stone. Arthur was next he stepped up and took the sword form the stone earning glares form a couple of the other kings, he placed the sword back in the stone and stood back waiting until it was his next turn.<p>

This time Cenred's guard spoke up. "Am I right in assuming that Merlin created the spell used, and is perhaps more powerful than some of the other magic users here?" he asked in a quiet voice that was full of malice. Arthur nodded and Merlin spoke up "I am more powerful than you all. I see your point though." Merlin's eyes flashed gold and all the other magic users present confirmed that Merlin's contribution to the spell had been withdrawn, it had been weakened without its anchor but would still hold. They all struggled with the sword, at one point it moved enough for a tiny crack to form when Olaf tried it, but that was the closest any of them got to Arthur who pulled it out again. After the third try they had to admit that the enchantment had worked and Arthur really would one day be the once and future king. Arthur passed the sword back to Tristain, not wanting to hold the cursed sword any longer than needed.

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><p>Elena stepped forward and clasped hands with Arthur. "You have always had my allegiance. I wish to be a Queen in my own right for a year or two but after that, I would be honoured to sit beneath Camelot's banner." Arthur pulled her into a hug. "Thank you old friend," she smiled and moved off. Odin came next. He stood in front of Arthur in his scared and battered armour and bearskin cape "if you treat her right, on marriage to my ward, you will gain my kingdom as a principality. But know this, if you hurt her, there will be no stopping me from seeking you out and feeding your guts to the crows' boy" Arthur tried not to look frightened. Of the other kings only Olaf offered to, through trade and friendship, become a principality of Camelot, on the condition that Arthur prove himself to be worthy, Aliened just glared at Arthur and told him politely that no he would not roll over for a kingling, Arthur would have to pry his lands from his cold dead fist. Cenred just sat there not saying anything then suddenly the air changed and Cenred threw a knife at Arthur's neck which was stopped in mid air by Merlin's magic. Arthur fixed his gaze on Cenred. The older of the two unsheathed both of his swords and glared at Arthur. "Do you really wish to break the dawn king truce?" Arthur asked through clenched teeth. Cenred stared back at him uttering one word. "Yes."<p>

Arthur unsheathed Excalibur while Merlin focussed his magic on a pebble near by watching Cenred's guard. He was right to do so, barely a second later the guard shouted out a spell and went to throw his spear at Arthur. Merlin flung his left hand out and yelled "_**earth rise!"**_ His spell was instant, a wall of earth absorbed the spell the guard shifted his gaze on Merlin and ran at him. Merlin smiled, of course it wasn't widely known yet that Merlin was not as hopeless at close quarter combat as he used to be, he waited until his opponent was near before he released his hold on the pebble he had located in the ground, it shot towards the guard with high velocity and cracked against the man's kneecap causing him to stumble a little and yelp with pain. He regained his balance and attacked Merlin properly, getting more and more annoyed as Merlin continued to dodge, he hesitated ever so slightly and in the blink of an eye Merlin had kicked his shin, punched his stomach and used magic to throw him across the whole clearing over the heads of the kings and into the undergrowth.

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><p>Merlin turned his sights on Cenred. "My lord, are you sure you want to break the dawn king truce? You know what the consequences are if you loose." Cenred scoffed looking at Arthur. "Do you really think I can't defeat a boy!" he sneered, Arthur raised an eyebrow answering in a bored tone. "I'm not a boy, I'm a king, and I am a pendragon." Cenred snarled and threw himself forward. The fight was hard and fast and brutal. Both men fighting their best, both men fighting extraordinarily well. Merlin stood on the sidelines near Elena who was wincing every so often. "Milady, why don't you walk down to the lake with your companion, tell Freya I sent you." She nodded, the real message though unspoken was clear, there was about to be a death, probably a gruesome one and Merlin did not wish for a female to witness it, not if they could help it, as he turned his head to the side he saw Caerleon's wife, queen Annis, head in the same direction. Though older and tougher she also didn't want to see a death, unless it was one she had ordered. Merlin focussed on the fight again, both men were starting to loose energy but then Merlin saw that look. That expression, the one the warlock prince called the 'pendragon' Arthur's stance tightened, his face creased with concentration. The next time Cenred made a move, Arthur spun and kicked one of Cenred's swords out of the other king's hand. Excalibur ended up the tip to Cenred's chest.<p>

"You have broken the dawn king truce and law, your fate lays with your fellow kings!" Arthur shouted and for the first time that day sounded truly like Uthur's son. It sent shivers down Merlin's spine, he knew what would follow. One by one the other gathered kings put their hands out flat, a hand raised up signified release and mercy, a hand dropped back down signified death, no hand was raised, they all were dropped. Arthur leant down "they want your swift death, you aided in my fathers murder, but I am willing to grant you mercy if you agree to renounce your claim to your throne and announce your servitude to me." Cenred growled and bowed his head in a sign of subservience, Arthur moved away and saw Merlin's eyes go gold.

that was the only warning he got, before a knife thrown by Cenred skimmed the side of his cheek having been thrown so suddenly that Merlin had not time to stop it or deflect it fully. Arthur spun at full speed and used the momentum to cut Cenred's head clean off, the other kings nodded satisfied, but what Arthur did next only made them respect him and fear him more. The new king knelt down in front of his fallen enemy, and prayed for Cenred's soul and safe passage to the afterlife. As he stood and turned Odin got down on one knee and said "the king of Acetia is dead, long live the new king! Long live the dawn king! Long live the king!" the rest did the same and Arthur felt a knot in his stomach. He now had two kingdoms to run, one of which until a few seconds ago had been his enemy, one which would now be in a state of turmoil. He started to feel slightly panicky until he saw Merlin. Merlin of ealdor, Merlin of Acetia and suddenly the panic turned to hope. Acetia would now have a king the people could be proud of, he would make sure of it, for Merlin, he would do it for Merlin.

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><p><strong>yup, THATS how cenred is killed off im my mind, not because he got destracted by morgouses eyeliner but because he got impatiant and greedy, <strong>

**also um sorry if the beheading freaked anyone out, but in my defence, the actual legands and poems are chocked full of men and women beign beheaded for the most random of reasons, **

**arthur has just started on his way to ruling all of albion, but obviously he doesn't want to move to acetia, so i ask you this, who will he send?**

**in unrelated news i had my first driving lesson today. i did pretty well aparently, and then i got home and dad walked past holing a sheet of text and asked me what it was, when i answered it was a page of my book which had accidentally been printed off dad gave me a huge smile and told me that he had readed the entire page over and over and had really enjoied it, he even quoated back to me his favourite line from the page! it was such a surreal experience, but was so cool! **

**back off my tangent the next chapter will be up next week or the next. (i try to keep the number of chapters i have writtain a ffew ahead of those i have posted, hencce the irratic updates) but it will definately bee next week or the week after. review? please? i'll let you warm yourself next to my virtual campfire and escape the winter chill if you do.**


	6. a new steward

**wheee! new chapter! new chapter! new chapter! **

**so arthur now has two kingdoms, what on earth will he do with the secound one? find out now :D**

**i did own merlin, but then i sugested gwen become a mildly homocidal warrior queen, and that merlin and arthur just run around in loin cloths, fan service for the fangirls, oddly they disagreed, so i was fired, no really honestly...ok so i dont now nore have i ever owned merlin, bah humbug. **

**read on! **

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><p>Arthur walked into the council chambers to find his advisors and council members already in a clamour talking over each other looking over maps and documents. He shouldn't have been surprised they would already be planning how to deal with gaining Acetia. He had the distinct impression some of them would approach him about being rewarded extra lands, they noticed his entrance and started all talking over each other again explaining why certain bits of the kingdom should be taken under their care. Arthur raised his hand for silence before he spoke. "Merlin was born in Acetia, ealdor and all the lands surrounding it will fall under him, as a gift for becoming prince, and compensation to the wrongs inflicted on his family by my father and his purge, I will have no argument on the matter, as for who will be steward of the kingdom, the province, I name a knight who has served both my father and me as knight who I trust implicitly but do not need by my side. Sir Malcolm will preside over Acetia." There was up roar talks of how Sir Malcolm was to meek to be given such an honour how surely the throne should be occupied by some one more experienced someone more senior.<p>

Merlin stepped forward at this point carrying his Sidhe Staff, he slammed the base on the ground a thump that echoed round the room. "Surely the people of Acetia should make the decision. It is they who will be affected, and as the only Acetian born here I shall speak on their behalf" his voice was calm and measured but it like Arthurs, left the gathered men in no doubt, he would not tolerate any argument. "you forget that sir Malcolm only sounds meek due to an injury hi sustained which would have killed most other men, it is his vocal cords which are damaged and weakened, not his heart or his mind, not his courage and not his intelligence. I would be honoured to have his as steward of Acetia." Merlin waved a lazy hand at the door and his mother walked in.

She still wore the cloth of a peasant but it had been finely cut and woven giving her the appearance of a peasant queen. "I was born and raised in Acetia, my husband was a dragonlord and my son is Emrys prince of Camelot, I would like to humbly offer myself as an advisor or servant of sir Malcolm, I would ensure the good parts of Acetian custom are up held and that the people of Acetia know that their new steward and new king are good men, honourable men." Merlin tried not to cry, he had known his mother couldn't stay for ever but having her around had made getting to know Bellanor easier she was a safe topic the siblings could fall back on and he felt happier knowing she was near him and his twin where they could protect her. Now though she would be leaving back to Acetia and he would miss her. Arthur turned to the gathered lords. "It is decided then! Malcolm will sit on Acetia's throne and he will have a vanguard watching over him as I have." He smiled and held in a laugh as Merlin used magic to float a couple of inches off the ground giving the appearance of literally watching over Arthur. The lords smiled at the change in tone and nodded their consent. Arthur smiled and clipped Merlin round the ear, they had work to do, as they left Merlin linked arms with his mother and escorted her out the room.

Bellanor was sat in a chair in the corner of the physician's chambers which Hunith had been using while in Camelot, she was looking between her mother and brother. She had no doubt Merlin was just as hesitant as her to see their mother go. "I got a message this morning" she said eventually Merlin and Hunith both paused in their packing of Hunith's belongings. "From our cousin your nephew, he said he will arrive here in a couple of days, it is a shame you will miss him mother" Hunith nodded. Walking towards her daughter and brushing her hand gently on Bellanor's cheek. "It is indeed a shame, but Malcolm is to move tomorrow and I must go with him. Besides now you will have reason to come visit me, in Acetia." The two women embraced and Hunith placed a gentle kiss to her daughter's forehead. "I love you both so very much, I have always known ballinor would be proud of you Merlin, but now having seen the two of you together, grown up, I can say with confidence he would be so very proud of you both." Merlin moved over and hugged his sister and mother. "I had Jane make you something, promise you will wear it on your travels and when near anyone who might harm you or Malcolm."

He passed over a simple blue cloak which on the outside looked dull and thread bare, but the lining was a rich dark blue almost black, it had silver patterns swirling around it, Hunith gasped. "Oh my boy. My sweet, odd little boy" her face broke into a dazzling smile. Merlin nodded holding back tears at having to say good bye to his mother again. "Use your ring, if you say the word 'withstand' it will become tough as mettle and protect anything it covers. Place it over damp wood and the wood will dry, if you hold it and move it while saying the word 'defend' the hem will turn sharp as a blade" he paused to take a deep breath. "It is a cloak made for survival. Wear it well mother." She nodded, placing the cloak on herself. "I must go and see Malcolm, I will save my goodbyes for tomorrow." She placed and hand on each of her twin children's shoulders and went in search of Malcolm.

Malcolm was stood in his room staring out of the window, it felt like a century ago Arthur had come to tell him of he change in status. His servant Edward was in the process of running around the room tidying it up. Malcolm let out a sigh which caused his servant to yelp and stand to attention. "I'm sorry sir, sorry sire, I was being to noisy wasn't I, I'm so sorry I interrupted your thoughts, oh and now I'm blabbering on and." Malcolm raised his hand and the servant stopped talking instantly. "you have been my servant for three years now lad, you know I am one of the more forgiving and laid back knights yet you still insist on getting nervous, please Edward breath, you are the best servant I have had for a while. I would hate for you to suffocate yourself because you forgot to breath," Edward went to say something else but Malcolm raised his hand again. "I feel I should make this abundantly clear being promoted to lord and steward of Acetia has not changed me it will not change me. Please do not any differently around me than you always have." Edward nodded, gaining a glare from Malcolm, he finally let out the breath he had been holding.

There was a knock at the door and both the men turned towards it, Edward moved to the door opening it to see Jane standing there holding a bundle. Edward smiled at her and muttered something about fetching Malcolm's food. Jane walked in trying not to blush. "I bought you some new clothes, I tried to make them as close to your style as possible but." She couldn't finish her sentence she was distracted by the look she was getting form the knight stood in front of her. "What is wrong with what I wear now?" Jane lowed her gaze. "Please Jane, just tell me what is going on." Jane finally looked up clearing her throat and looking anywhere but at Malcolm. "Arthur already knew his meeting would not go flawlessly, he had several knights in mind in case a kingdom was left without a ruler. He already knew if Cenred attacked he would name you as steward, he also knew that the best way to ease the people of Acetia into having a new ruler would be to dress that ruler appropriately. What you have there" she pointed at bundle. "is traditional attire of the ruler of Acetia, Cenred wore something like it as did the previous king. As I said I tried to make it in a way you would be comfortable with, I'm sorry if it isn't to your taste I best go and leave you to it." She curtseyed and started backing off towards the door it was as she reached the door Malcolm finally found his voice.

"But Cenred wore leather!" He called to her as she made a hasty exit.

Malcolm wasn't given time to process this turn of events. It was at that moment Edward returned with his food. "I passed Jane on my way in, she was walking with great haste." Edward said smiling to himself, he had noticed when Malcolm's protective glances at Jane had turned to loving ones. He never usually commented on it but he had learned that Malcolm didn't mind the servant bringing it up occasionally provided, they were alone and no one would over hear the conversation. Edward looked up at his master. "What was that you were saying about breathing sire?" Malcolm let out his breath. He pointed at the bundle on his bed. "I do not wear leather" he said trying very hard not to pout like a kid. Hunith entered the room and carried the clothes over to the dressing screen "you do now sire, I'm sorry it is the price to pay for being steward of Acetia, besides they were made by Jane, that girl is abnormally talented with creating clothes and mending them, she would never make you something that made you look stupid." Edward watched the new arrival move around the room with ease and found a smile spreading across his face.

"Merlin always knew how to do the tasks of a servant didn't he?" he asked Hunith who smiled back. "I made a point of teaching him how to tidy and clean, how to cook what little food we had, I taught him to read and write, I tried to teach him everything he would need if he were to become and assistant or servant." She smiled again and the two men in the room smiled as well knowing what she was about to say. "He purposefully messed up to seam less impressive than he actually is. Can you imagine the tasks Arthur would have set him at the start had he known Merlin wasn't a bumbling fool?" both men nodded. Merlin's list of tasks would never have ended.

"Did you always know he would get to where he is now?" she sighed and moved to the window thinking over the question. "I knew his father was the last dragon lord. I knew he was Emrys, I knew he was important. Just as I knew his sister needed to be kept safe and hidden from those who would hurt her. But i never once suspected he would be made royalty. That thought never even crossed my mind." She smiled but it didn't reach her eyes.

Malcolm walked over and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Well now you are going to be adviser to the steward of Acetia, a fitting position to the mother of Emrys." He said smiling at her. Hunith laughed lightly at that. "Yes I suppose you have a point, my first bit of advice is get used to wearing that" she said pointing at the bundle of clothing. "Also, get some rest tomorrow is a busy day. Good day to you Edward I shall see you in the morning" she drifted out of the room leaving Malcolm standing staring at his food and the dressing screen. "How do they do it? Ever one of the vanguard families manages to give orders disguised as suggestions and every time one feels uneasy until one has completed the task."

Edward shrugged, moving to start turning down the knight's bed for the evening. "I don't know sire but you have seen how restless Arthur gets when Merlin does it. I suggest you do as she said." Malcolm harrumphed good naturedly and dragged himself over towards the dressing screen, this new role was going to take some getting used to, almost as much as his new attire.

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><p><strong>those of you wondering, (because i'm not sure how deeply i described him), in my head Sir Malcolm looks a litle like sir leon but with lancelot's colouring and greying hair, he is youngish but still slightly older that our knights and king. though that's just how i see him, you can invent his look in your own mind, also, yes, i have forced him into leather like cedred lol find out next chapterwhat it looks like :D <strong>

**naxt chapter up in a week or two, i'm writing more of my space based fic so editing is talking longer than usual. appologies for any spelling/gramma mistakes, i'll try and update sooner this time. **


	7. a parting of sorts

**oh hullo, what no shut up! it can't be! an update? tell me it isn't real, **

**sorry yes it is an update, yes it is real. this chapter the new steward of acetia and his advisor (hunith) head out towards their new roles, not sure it's emotional enough :( oh well, hope you like, **

**i did own merlin but then i wanted morganna to wear bright colours againa nd they told me that evil witches dont wear bright colours, so i dont own merlin, i do own my OC's and the plot of this story. read on!**

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><p>a parting of sorts.<p>

Arthur hugged Hunith with a warm smile and promises to send her children to visit her soon. She hugged him like he was her own child. "I worry for you sometimes you hold such a burden for one so young." She said quietly to him, he gave her a sad look. "it is my destiny and my fate, I don't stand alone, you need not worry for me Hunith" she laughed,

"well I already worry for one son It isn't to much hassle to worry for his blood brother while I'm at it." Arthur laughed with her. In the weeks she had been here he had started to truly see where Merlin and Bellanor got their gentle kindness and fierce loyalty from it seamed to be an intrinsic part of each vanguard's soul. "Well we have Bellanor here to do the sisterly thing and tease us and tell us when we do things wrong." he quipped earning a gentle slap on his arm from the mother. "come now, Bellanor would never do that she is to much my daughter to tell you when you mess up, she is far more likely to let you mess up and revel in the amusement caused by your tomfoolery." the king smiled

"We'll miss you Hunith Vanguard, lady ealdor." she curtseyed to him as he bowed to her.

"Mother" Bellanor said as she stepped forward on the steps and embraced her mother, The two clung onto each other. "I have failed you as a mother for too long my darling. I knew I could only keep one and ballinor had told me of a son who had a great destiny, so I left you in safe hands and prayed you would be ok." Bellanor struggled to hold in tears. "Mother it is ok I understand, I am just glad I have met you and have had a chance to know you now, I am proud to be your daughter, never doubt that." Hunith smiled at her daughter. "Your father would be so proud of the woman you have become, he was wrong not to know of your destiny, for I sense it is just as great as your brother's." the mother placed a gentle kiss on her daughters forehead before turning to her son.

Merlin shifted uncomfortably, once again he had been forced to wear his prince's clothes and crown. It would have annoyed him but at that moment every eye of those gathered in the courtyard to see the new steward of Acetia off was focussed on him and his mother. He knew everyone was talking about his mother, the woman who gave birth to Emrys, the wife of the last of the old dragon lords. He smiled at his mother. "Take care mother, I will send a wyvern to keep an eye on you, Kilgarrah says he has managed to tame a couple of them." Hunith sighed at her son smiling good naturedly at the young warlock. "For goodness sake Merlin, I don't need a guard dog. The cape will do fine. I'm sure there are villages hounded by bandits who could use a wyvern." Merlin chuckled. "Telling the prince of Camelot how to spread his resources now are you?" Hunith laughed at her son. "Forever and always, it's the mother's prerogative." She took a deep breath. "Promise me you will be careful my boy, I worry. You are too selfless and caring for your own good sometimes." He nodded, hugging her again, he leant back and looked her in the eyes. "I promise to be cautious and I promise to come and visit you. I won't say good bye, it sounds to final," she nodded. "You must go mother, Lord Malcolm will be here soon and the two of you will need to make haste if you are to make it to Acetia on schedule" they hugged again and Hunith moved towards her horse where Gwaine helped her up into her saddle.

Arthur was distracted form the sight of an abnormally sober Gwaine by the glazed over look that fell across most of to women in the courtyard, following their line of sight even he had to admit he couldn't blame them. He took hold of Gwen's hand as she started to stare. "Relax my love you are safe, it is just hard not to notice him." she said with a smile as Arthur went to answer Gwen whispered in his ear. "I didn't mind you staring at Bellanor when she first appeared in her formal dress." Arthur smiled at his betrothed, and relaxed safe in the knowledge that though they could and would appreciate the good looks of others both only had eyes for each other. "Good, so you won't mind me staring at him also." he joked earning a chuckle from Gwen.

Lord Malcolm was wearing the traditional leather clothes of an Acetia leader, the top he wore had woven leather sleeves which hugged his arms revealing them to be toned and taught with muscle, the front of the top was a selection of tough leather panels which moved with his body, the back was woven like the sleeves, his trousers were a mixture of woven leather for manoeuvrability and panels for strength and protection, where Jane had been kind to the knights modesty was that she had not made the trousers too constricting. She had used dark red leather similar to the colour of the tunics worn by the knights of Camelot and also made him a cape of deep blue, with a pendragon crest on one shoulder and his own on the other. He placed the cape on and turned to the king. "Sire it is a great honour you have bestowed upon me, I will not let you down." Arthur tilted his head a little smiling. "I know you won't it is why I chose you for the task. If you need any help don't let pride and stubbornness stop you from asking Camelot for it." Malcolm smiled at the king. "It is odd sire, I was about to say the same thing." The king laughed, knowing the knight had clearly been paying more attention to his progress than he had thought.

"Then I suppose we must both take my advice."

Malcolm turned to Gwenevire. "Goodbye lady Gwenevire, promise you will look out for them." he said and while he didn't say who he meant, Gwen knew he was talking about Jane. "You have my word lord Malcolm, they will be safe as long as I have breath in my body." he smiled at her and kissed her hand, he turned to Bellanor and Merlin.

"I promise to you prince Merlin, lady Bellanor. You're mother will come to no harm while in my service, I will cherish her council as Arthur cherishes yours Merlin, and I will care for her as Gwen cares for you Bellanor." The twins nodded. Merlin pulled the knight into a manly embrace "you will always find help from magic if you but ask." He said and Malcolm smiled, "I am glad to hear it Emrys, though if you could hold back on sending wyverns, I do believe it will be easier for the people to accept me if they are not being watched by fearsome beasts" Merlin chuckled and Bellanor leant forward interrupting her brothers next words. "I will make sure he doesn't send any, he forgets he is not the only one who can command them any more." she shot her brother a mocking glance as he sighed dejectedly no doubt having liked the idea of sending wyverns to watch over their mother and the lord. Malcolm chuckled. "If you'd like to send then as escorts I'm sure no one would object." he suggested and Merlin let out a happy yelp and clapped his hands.

Merlin and Bellanor's eyes went gold and they shouted something in the dragon tongue, suddenly two wyverns came and landed next to the dragon lord and lady. Merlin pointed at Malcolm and then his mother who was on her horse waiting. "_**escort, protect, then return.**_" the wyverns bowed their heads and lifted off plummeting back down to hover near Hunith, one of them nudged her shoulder gently and she reached out and petted it's snout, laughing when it let out a happy purr and took off again. "They recognise her, as your mother and the wife of the previous dragonlord." Malcolm observed, as he watched the interaction. Merlin answered the new lords words, "They will recognise you as an ally and friend of the last dragon lord and first dragon lady."

The knight smiled at that. He made his final farewells and moved to his horse as he rode out he passed Jane, sending her one last smile he rode out of the citadel and out towards his new home his new kingdom.

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><p><strong>well? oh and the cape hunith mentions, is the one merlin had jane make, it's enchanted to protect her, i can't remember if i mentioned that, oops. <strong>

**also i've just introduced agrivane in the chapter i've written, what do you think i have done with him? you'll find out in a few chapters time! **

**reviews are lovely, seeing as its the day after my parents wedding anerversary you could leave a review as a belated gift to them, (yes i did just resort to emotional blackmail lol) sorry for any mistakes i have missed in the editing. **


	8. a cousin arrives

**hullo, so um i think this is actually like a week later than i said it would be. so, sorry, i can be a little vague sometimes and that translates into forgetting wether or not i have updated stories lol **

**so who has guessed who merlin's cousin is? well find out if you were right this chapter, i still don't own merlin. i still hope you like what you read...**

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><p>a cousin arrives.<p>

Merlin was sitting in the window of his room, looking out over the woodlands, it had been a couple of days since his mother left back to Acetia. But that wasn't why he was lost in his own little world. Today was the day his cousin arrived. He had been told by Bellanor that his cousin had been to Camelot before but hadn't known of his relative living there. Merlin was getting bored of trying to work out who his cousin might be. It couldn't be one of the people he had killed in protecting Arthur, and it sickened Merlin to realise just how much that shortened the list. Just as he was about to get lost in a pool of self pity his door opened and Tristain walked over to his boyfriend wrapping his arms around the prince and resting his head on Merlin's shoulder.

"You need to stop fixating on this, today you will find out, today you will properly meet your cousin. I know you, and you are focussing on the guilt of all the people it can't be, because you killed them." Tristain said to the sombre prince. "You gain a family member today. Please focus on that, not the negatives" the knight's tone brightened. "Besides we have a king to and annoy!" he said far too cheerily as he spun his boyfriend around and kissed him on the cheek. Merlin let out a reluctant chuckle. "Ah yes, the new court physician that I have found, the only one whose skill rivals in not supersedes Gaius's skill." Merlin commented as Tristain took his hand and started walking towards the door, the prince following on behind him. "Wonder how he'll react, he needs a good physician" Tristain answered as they started moving down the corridor, Merlin sent him a nervous smile. "I just hope he takes into account the fact they didn't want to kill his father and had no choice but to try" Tristan smiled before he stated walking faster. Merlin had to run to catch up Tristan smiled again "there's only one way we will know, come on lets go tell the king we found the perfect woman for the job!" his grin grew impossibly larger.

Arthur looked up when the doors to the council chamber raising an eyebrow as he saw Merlin stumble in with Tristain just behind him the knight's eyes only just returning from gold to blue. He looked at Merlin again and saw an expression he had seen before, "no!" he shouted across to his blood brother. Merlin stopped mid stride stumbling slightly. The young warlock raised an eyebrow at the king. "No? Arthur brother dearest, I haven't even spoken yet." Merlin said with a hint of amusement in his voice. Arthur shrugged and went back to working on the reports he was working on not looking up as he answered. "I know that look by now Merlin, and it is usually followed by you asking or suggesting something I won't like, so to save us the trouble, no." Merlin strode over to the king and slammed his hand down on the reports causing the king to jump back into his chair. "Listen closely sire, you tasked me with finding a physician capable of taking on Gaius' responsibilities to the level he carried them out." Arthur went to talk but saw the look in Merlin's eyes and realised this was one of those time he just had to sit back and listen. "I found someone the perfect someone in fact probably the only person capable of curing Gaius." Merlin took a deep breath. "You are right there is a part of this you won't like. The woman I have in mind, she once tried to kill your father" Arthurs eyes widened at the mention of his late father. "She did it against her will under the influence of a creature of magic, a creature that Gaius and I destroyed, she escaped and has since dedicated herself to the healing arts once more"

Arthur leant forward "the fact remains though Merlin that she did try and kill my father, and she was once an enemy of Camelot, what it to stop her turning on us again? Of falling pray of another creature or being?" Merlin ran a hand through his hair frustrated, even with accepting magic Arthurs first reaction was still mistrust. "No sire, the fact remains that she has been shocked enough to be even wearier of the magic she wields and is cautious of new people. Her experience if anything will make her a firmer friend of Camelot and you, she has much to make up for. Let her have the chance"

Arthur slumped in his chair he knew it was an argument he would not win and the more he thought about it the more he realised that not only was Merlin likely right, but also that if there was a problem Merlin would be onto it immediately, already knowing who they had been talking about he asked the question anyway. "Who is she? This physician?" he asked Merlin who smiled widely. "My aunt, Alice. She taught Gaius a lot of what he knew, knows. She is a skilled physician and I promise she has reformed and will serve you well." Arthur sighed. That was who he thought it would be, he rubbed his temples.

I truly hope you are right Merlin," he looked up at the young warlock stood next to him. "Oh and Merlin, don't ever call me sire again. It sounds wrong now."

Merlin shrugged. "Right yeah, I suppose you have a point. Anyway now we have that out of the way, my cousin arrives today, and I expect you to be on your best behaviour." Arthur spluttered "excuse me! Merlin, I am the king! You don't give me orders!" he said exasperated. Merlin raised an eyebrow. "Well I do if I think you might act foolishly brother" Arthur sighed dejectedly, he stood up and started walking with his blood brother towards the. "Why exactly do you think I'm going to act stupidly?" Arthur asked the prince. Merlin turned to him and Arthur was struck with the thought that perhaps he didn't want to know. "He has been to Camelot before." Arthur sighed. Every sorcerer to have come to Camelot had been caught and sentenced to death, come to blows with Merlin or made a hasty escape before they could be killed, all of a sudden Arthur could see why Merlin had told him to behave.

Bellanor was standing at the edge of the training field watching the knights' train when the two royals found her. "m'lords'" she greeted them, "our cousin should be here soon I thought I'd waste some time watching the knights." She commented as her brother came to stand next to her. "sir Gwaine has a most peculiar fighting style, it is more tavern brawl than anything else, and yet it is interspersed with truly enlightened technique, which I'm sure you drilled into him Arthur" Arthur nodded at her observation, one of the reasons he liked having his cousin as a knight was because his style, was unpredictable, Which is a good thing on a battle field, to have on your side. "Tristain shares the same unpredictability, he has trained with a variety of kings and knights in his capacity as a hedge knight, and taught himself a few extra moves in his time travelling alone, the man is like a spider when he needs to be, climbing up and running along walls at heights that would make most dizzy, it makes him invaluable to our defence." Merlin smiled at the king's compliment. his smile faded into an indignant splutter when the kings words were followed by the question "when are you and Tristain going to solidify your love through matrimony?" Merlin turned to stare at his blood brother who was trying not to smirk he looked to his sister for help but she was to busy laughing to be of any help at all.

Tristain turned to her and called out "lady Bellanor, are you ok?" his concern only heightened her amusement and Merlin's blush. Merlin turned to Arthur and in a deathly quiet and controlled voice answered "we were waiting for you to get your act together and take the lady Gwen has your wife" it was Arthurs turn to blanche, he had been thinking of asking Elyan and Odin for permission to marry her but hadn't found the time. He was saved having to retort by Bellanor squealing with glee and running towards a hooded figure to the side of the training field, as she reached him she flung her arms around the mysterious newcomer causing his hood to fall back revealing, Gilli.

"Bellanor! It is good to see you it has been far too long cousin" he spoke honestly holding her back to get a good look at her. She reached up and traced the line of a feint scar that was on his cheek. "What happened! Why isn't it healed! Why did you not go and have it fixed!" Gilli rolled his eyes at his female cousin, then his sight settled on Merlin and his smile faltered a little before it returned bigger than before, he gently moved Bellanor to the side and strode over to Merlin who was now smiling as well, "Gilli!" the warlock laughed" I guess I spoke more truth than I was aware of before" he said as the new arrival came up and hugged him. "We are kin indeed Merlin, had I known then, I would," his sentence drifted off as he saw the king standing there staring at him. "Sire, in the past I nearly did your family great dishonour it was Merlin who showed me there was another way, he spared me despite my previous bad will. Had I known then that it was my cousin speaking to me I would have done the honourable thing and relented sooner, it is my intention to be a sorcerer worthy of being cousin to Emrys it is my intention to serve Camelot as my cousins do"

Arthur stared at the new arrival for a while before he finally spoke. "You fought my father in the final of a tournament a few years back, you used magic?" Gilli looked slightly ashamed when he answered "yes M'lord" to his and all gathered surprise the king laughed. "I forbid you from ever doing that again!" he said but continued to laugh, Merlin placed a hand on the kings arm. "Mind letting us in on the wonderful joke in your royal noggin?" he asked teasingly, Arthur got his laughter under control Looking Gilli, then Merlin, in the eye before continuing. "I had a thought, a thought so out of kilter with everything my father believed it just made me laugh, its probably a stupid idea which would never work, but what if?" he looked at Merlin almost as if he were seeking permission. "What if we had a tournament of magic, instead of sword, quarter staff, jousting, mace work the gathered sorcerers' did spell casting enchantments and so on." The king went silent on realising his gathered knights had all come over to listen in. Percival was the first to speak. "would that even work? We don't know the level of skill they would have, also what would the prize be?" Gilli hefted a shield from his back revealing the intricate symbols of the old religion. He flipped it around in his hand before with a glow of golden eyes he launched it off through the air, it soared through the air and cut a thin line in the wall of the training field before it spun round in the air and streaked back towards its owner whose eyes went gold again halting the shield in its tracks just in front of his hand. "We have our skills and uses, as for a prize I don't know I think the prince should decide."

Merlin who had been staring off into the middle distance suddenly did and odd little hop and skip on the spot before he smiled merrily "I've got it! If you have your knights, Arthur, why can't I have my own version? A band of sorcerers tasked with protecting Camelot and its people, winner gets the chance to join." Galahad raised an eyebrow. "Surely though a sorcerer with ill intent could put all their power into winning and then use the prize to get close to the king and assassinate him?" Merlin nodded at the teen's point. The young knight was right. "If they try that I will simply eradicate them from existence" Merlin said mater of factly causing those gathered to look concerned. "You can do that?" Percival asked unsure. Merlin looked at the taller man and smiled. "Not yet, no, I don't think so. But with my level of power, in time, it is entirely probable I will be able to stop a person from ever existing. of course the balance needs to be sustained so I'm certain would not be a good idea." His words were met with silence, Gilli breaking the silence by muttering

"You really are quite odd sometimes Merlin, for future reference, the ability to wipe people from existence isn't a normal thing to think about." Merlin shuddered as a thought occurred to him, it would appear the same thought had occurred to Tristain who finally spoke up. "he isn't just thinking about it, he has already done it to a degree, its how he killed my mother and revived Gaius, he called down a storm and lightning and struck not just her heart but her soul, even if someone were to know necromancy and tried to bring her back they could not, her blackened soul was destroyed just as thoroughly as her twisted mind and body." Merlin opened his mouth to say something but Tristain cut him off. "no Merlin, she enchanted my father, poisoned his mind against his own father and children, she cursed her own daughter and forced me out of my inheritance and title, leaving me no choice but to abandon my sister and live as a hedge knight. not only that, she also engineered the death of a queen in the hopes that those with magic would rise up and kill uthur pendragon so she could raise the once and future king to be her puppet."

He paused his eyes settling on Arthurs, "she was a monster and a fiend, it is no wonder your father started the purge, nimueh came to him as a friend as Gaius did, but unlike Gaius, she had no intention of helping Camelot. She deserved death, Emrys in his rage gave her exactly what she deserved." He stopped talking and Arthur reached out and placed a hand on the knight's shoulder. "I think the greatest retaliation for her many sins is that her son who she rejected is now one of the greatest fighters in all the lands and a man I hold dear to my heart as a brother in arms" Tristain smiled Sending a glance at Merlin who smiled back. "So when are you going to propose to my cousin?" Gilli asked calmly, the mood shifted instantly. "has Bellanor given the customary 'if you hurt my brother I will turn you into a stone' speech or do I need to." He continued Tristain stood there spluttering at the change in subject. Before he straightened up and trying hard not to blush he looked Gilli in the eye and said. "Actually as the both of us are men it falls on the one with a higher social ranking to do the proposing, and Merlin is a prince while I am a knight."

He paused and moved closer again glancing at Merlin who was trying not to laugh, the prince knew what was coming next. "If anything it should be my sister giving that speech and she is a nature spirit, so if you do turn me into a stone she will turn you into a tree, a tree which will be cut down and chopped up into teeny tiny little pieces to be used as firewood." Gilli went to say something. "She wouldn't do it to Merlin, she actually likes him, and so you would be punished in his place Guilin! Oh yes I know that's your real name." Merlin saw his boyfriend about to launch into a rant so stepped forward.

"if either of you do anything to alter the others state of being I will turn you both into pretty little flowers and give the flowers to Gwen and Bellanor. Now shut up." they did as told and Merlin turned to see Bellanor trying not to laugh. "furthermore, I am Emrys Gilli, if Tristain does do me a disservice I am perfectly capable of looking after myself, I'm a prince of Camelot for goodness sake, I'm Emrys!" there was another long pause of silence before Gilli turned towards Merlin. "So when are you going to propose to sir Tristain?" Merlin threw his hand up with exasperation, groaning. "I'll propose to him when the both of us are good and ready in my own time, so would you please just leave us be!" he stomped off and then touching a wall, disappeared. Missing the affectionate smile his cousin and sister sent in his direction.

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><p><strong>GILLI! he's back! <strong>

**oh i am going to have fun with this, and awkward 'marrige' talk is awkward mwahahah, oh god i'm a little hyper today. sorry sorry but.**

**oh the things i have planned for gilli. also i can't remember if i ever clarified, but gaius is not dead, he is in a coma. so he may return at some point. **

**ok so other than my vagueness getting in the way, i will up date this at some point in the next fortnight.**

**review? you know you want to, i can tellhehe.**


	9. a new brother

**hullo, well i would say "a new chapter' but i'm not sure this counts as a proper chapter, its a mini one, but an important one one i'm hopeing you have been looking forward to, weirdly, the *SPOILER*new actor they got in to play mordred is how i was invisioned him O.o spooky. **

**i don't own merlin, i'm just borrowing. hope you like.**

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><p>a new brother.<p>

The teen skulked around the side of the house he had claimed as his own, he had sensed someone approaching and exited through the back door to the small home, he came round the front and saw the back of a young woman her clothes were covered in dirt and dust and the sleeves were torn, he was about to strike at the intruder when she turned around. "Mordred!" she called to him a weak smile spreading across her face, the teen stepped forward, he hadn't recognised her at first but now she had spoken it was impossible not to recognise her. "Morganna, it is good to see you after so long" he spoke in a quiet voice. She flinched at the use of her old name, noticing that he had seen she explained. "That name is jinxed, every time it is spoken I feel physical pain, that name was taken from me, and a new one given" Mordred frowned, who would have the right and the power to do that. "My brother, he stripped me of my name and title, my lands and rights, he banished me from Camelot and gave me a new name" she took a shaky breath, her expression was sorrowful but her eyes burned with rage. "My brother king Arthur stripped me of my identity. I am now called, Morgan le Fay. But it is more than that he has chosen a new sibling for himself a prince to take his throne if he dies, it is this blood brother this paupers prince who jinxed my name" Mordred was sure he wouldn't like the answer to his next question but asked it anyway. "What is this new prince called?" Morgan clenched her fists, her reply coming out more a growl than word.

"Merlin vanguard, the druids though, they call him Emrys." Mordred's eyes went golden and a nearby block of wood which had been waiting to be chopped exploded. "I should have killed him when I had the chance" he said his eyes fading back to their glacial blue.

Morgan took the moment of silence to observe the teen, now aged sixteen the boy was starting to look like the man he would one day be. His hair had been cut shorter than when she had last seen him, he was of a similar build to Merlin but was already showing signs that he would be more muscular, he had grown taller and was already the same height as her, he was no longer a cute child. "You've grown" she said, he smiled at her, raising a questioning eyebrow at her. she slapped him lightly on the arm. "You know I didn't mean it like that. You are the little brother I always hoped to have." He smiled again nodding he started moving back towards the small hut he called home. "As you are the sister I always wanted. But enough chit chat, what brings you to my doorstep, years with out word then you turn up unannounced? There must be a reason." He sat on dark wooden chair which looked far too nice to be in a decrepit old hut, he motioned for Morgan to take a seat.

Morgan sat down and started scraping at the table. "I was banished from Camelot, and I am not stupid enough to believe that Merlin wouldn't place detection charms around the boarders. Or have some way to tell if I entered the lands. So I went and hid within Acetia with Cenred who had helped my sister and I try and take my throne, we killed my father but not my brother, my beloved sister was slain in the process. I was safe there for a while but Arthur called a dawn king meeting, I warned Cenred to be careful and cautious, that Arthur was protected and highly capable of winning a straight fight." She clenched her fist again her expression annoyed "of course the idiot ignored my advice and challenged King Arthur to a fight, one that ended with his head being cut off and Arthur ceasing Acetia as a territory of Camelot, I had to leave, two of the people I held most dear have been killed because they acted rashly." Mordred smiled now leaning forward. "You trust me not to make the same mistake?" she nodded, she trusted him to be smarter. "I believe you of all people will understand that to kill the king and his pet warlock we will need to out smart them and come from the sides not face to face, not yet at least." Mordred sat in his chair and though it over. He stood up and fetched some parchment. "very well, what is our plan" Morgan's eyes shone with glee for the first time in a while, finally she was reunited with the brother she never had the brother she deserved, finally she had someone with as much hatred for the pendragon/vanguard brother hood as she did, finally she might actually get her throne and have someone she trusted beside her as kin.

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><p><strong>! mordred and morgan(morganna) back together teaming up united in evil. this is all you get from them for a while but dont worry there will be more, much more. i like the idea of arthur claiming merlin as his blood brother, as the sibling he always wanted. while at the same time morganna is doing the same thing with mordred. <strong>

**next chapter will be up in a couple of days (i'd feel bad if i gave you such a short chapter and made you wait a fortnight for the next one) by easter at the latest. keep an eye out for the next chapter of "camelot AE" as well. **

**(sorry about any spelling mistakes that escaped my notice.) **

**review? please? pretty please?**


	10. new warlock, old king

**oh good god i'm actually updating this when i said i would! how odd. this chapter changes things. i seam to say that most chapters but if you read on you'll see what i mean. **

**i dont own merlin, i'm just borrowing some of the charactors, and adding others, i promice to return when i'm done playing lol**

**hope you enjoy this chapter...**

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><p>new warlock, old king.<p>

Merlin and Gilli were leaning against the ramparts on the tallest tower of the citadel. Gilli was fiddling with his ring while Merlin used his magic to make little dancing lights while they talked and caught up, Gilli had been to see his true father for the first time, it was tough but needed to happen, Merlin had left Gilli to sit by his prone father's side alone after he had adjusted to his fathers comatose state Gilli had sought out Merlin and the two of them had spoken freely and candidly about their lives and adventures and their magic. Every time one of Merlin's spheres of light got to close to Gilli the young sorcerer would laugh and bat it away with his hand, this was how they found out Gilli could survive contact with Merlin's magic, the flames Merlin conjured in his hand burnt anything they touched but could be passed to Gilli with no harm done. Merlin was stood there listening to Gilli talk about how he had come to make his shield, the shield like the ring acted as a conduit to enhance Gilli's magic. But a thought had occurred to Merlin. "Gilli, have you ever tried magic with out the ring or shield?" his cousin looked at him puzzled, "oh I don't think that would be a good idea, they control my magic, they stop me form hurting people." The sorcerer answered, it was the reaction he had expected, since their last encounter Gilli had been hesitant to use his magic realising what he had almost done in the quest for glory.

Merlin rolled his eyes, the truth was if Gilli was capable of doing spells without using either his ring or shield then the enchantments would probably be more accurate and less crude. "Try, here where there is only me, I can defend myself." Merlin said seriously as he looked his newly discovered cousin in the eye, Gilli hesitated before removing the ring and focusing on his hand and whispering "_**forbaernan**_." A little flame appeared in his hand as tears welled up in his eyes, he had never felt magic like this, unadulterated, pure magic, he felt the flame tickle his palm felt its heat but it didn't burn him, Merlin's eyes went gold and his own little flame appeared in his palm. The two young magicians looked at each other and laughed with joy.

"you feel it don't you gill' the hum, the tingle, the safety and the joy, the danger and the sorrow, that is magic, in its purest form, tell me. What do you want to do with that flame? Light the way or burn something to cinders? The magic is waiting to be told." Gilli smiled at the prince. "It's amazing, I can feel it in every fibre of my being, and I can hear whispers. Is that normal?" Merlin's expression turned sad briefly before he answered the question. "I don't know how, but magic is almost sentient, the whispers you hear but don't hear, they are suggestions they are the magic acting as your servant or your slave, it is asking you 'would you like to use me to heal or harm' I have learnt how to use it as a servant, for it is me and I am it, I ask it to throw someone through the air and it does so, I beg it to heal someone and it will, the moment you treat it like a slave is the moment you become what you nearly were, what Morgan is." Gilli nodded at his cousins words he had never though of it in that way but now he had heard Merlin say the words it made sense. He looked down at the small flame in his hand and gently pushed it out through the air, it hovered for a bit before Merlin reached out and took it in his hand, he then pushed his flame towards his cousin and the two young men started having a game of catch with the two small flames passing between them. Together they laughed and wasted away the afternoon practising magic tricks on each other. Gilli hung the ring round his neck and finally embraced all of the magic he held.

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><p>Arthur was sat in the council chambers when the two cousins appeared in front of him. He raised an eyebrow at the small scorch marks on their clothes. Merlin smiled and produced a little flame in his hand and casually threw it to the side where it extinguished with a slight pop leaving only a small darkened patch on Gilli's tunic, the young sorcerer laughed and produced his own flame and repeated the action, causing the prince to burst out laughing again. Arthur cleared his throat. "While I am glad the two of you have reconnected as kin, I did actually require your presence earlier Merlin, Gilli your rooms are ready now, the prince's servant will show you to them at your convenience." Gilli bowed and stepped out of the room smiling at his cousin as he left. Merlin took a deep breath and moved towards Arthur, something in the king's tone told him he was not going to like this.<p>

"Arthur? There is something on your mind, what is it?" Arthur rubbed his temple and motioned for his blood brother to sit down, Merlin did so looking worried. Arthur leant forward and pushed a piece of parchment towards the warlock. "This is the initial report from Lord Malcolm, and the honourable Hunith of ealdor. Some of it is troubling to read" Merlin looked at the report sent mere hours after his mother and Malcolm had arrived, it stated how news of Cenred's death had not been taken well by his loyal knights, they had tried to assassinate Malcolm as soon as he came into site, only Hunith's quick thinking, and use of her enchanted cloak had given Malcolm time to retaliate, Acetia's people had seen this new arrival in the customary dress of Acetian royalty and leader ship calmly accept the presence of magic. They saw instantly the difference and knew he had been sent by King Arthur. Knowing in their hearts that salvation and a kind ruler had finally come. They took up makeshift weapons and helped defeat those loyal to Cenred. Malcolm had been left with very little army to defend Acetia and a mound of dead body's to deal with, things were headed in the right direction but it would be slow and hard work. Merlin sighed. "I suppose you will send some of our few remaining knights to help train up willing men to be guards and soldiers then?" Merlin asked leaning forward in his seat, Arthur gave a surprised look realising that Merlin had clearly been listening in all of those boring council meetings he had had to stand and observe as Arthurs servant.

Arthur nodded confirming that that was exactly what he planned to do. "actually the news of your mother narrowly avoiding assassination and having to witness a bloody battle was the news I thought you would take better, it was the good news I had for you" Merlin raised a Gaius worthy eyebrow at the king's comment. "Because your mother survived, Not because she was almost killed for standing to close to the new steward of Acetia" the king clarified in a weak voice. Merlin leant back in his seat. Asking his next question despite being unsure he wanted to know the answer. "What is it then? It can't really be all that bad can it?" Arthur shifted uncomfortably in his seat at the head of the long table. Eventually he muttered something and pushed another parchment towards Merlin who picked it up the king motioned for Merlin to read it out loud.

"when three or more siblings are sired it is the elder twos prerogative to claim the throne, even if one or more of them is banished or struck off, So it shall be, until a remaining sibling with rights to the throne, sires a blood heir of their own." Merlin read it out and looked across at Arthur. "Why would this bother me? You mealy have to persuade Odin to move yours and Gwen's wedding ahead of schedule and um yes, well why would it bother me?" Arthur slid his chair slightly further away from Merlin's.

"Funny story, Odin steadfastly refuses to allow me to marry Gwen until I have served at least a season as king, Elyan agrees with him. Morgan could strike at any point within that time if she remembers that specific law. Geoffrey has looked into old religion forms of union, it would appear things are different for those with magic, provided the man and woman have a 'healthy and heart felt respect and caring' for each other they may bear a child before wedlock, it is welcomed it ensures the wider magical community survives in harmony." Arthur said it all poetically and eloquently, so much so that it took a beat for Merlin to realise what had just been said, he stood up quickly his eye going gold instinctively lighting all of the candles in the room. "No! No Arthur! You can not be serious! I won't do it!"

Arthur stood as well, "you swore to do anything in your power to protect Camelot. Well Camelot needs an heir to the throne who is either my son or my nephew, the only viable option we have is a nephew!" Merlin's face went stone cold and the walls and windows of the council chamber started to shake. "Freya is not some hussy wench and I am no common whore, you better stay away form me for a while" his words had been quiet, the last ones almost conversational, but the fierce gold of the warlocks eyes and the shattering of windows belayed the true tempest and threat of the words, Merlin turned to the door and with a flick of his wrist the heavy oak doors slammed open cracking along the grain and chilling the stone walls of the chamber, Arthur slumped into his seat again for the first time ever terrified of his friend, his blood brother, his prince.

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><p>Tristain looked out his window and saw a storm gathering, when it had been sunny only moments ago, it could have been mistaken for a natural storm if not for the fact that as he watched a lightning bolt struck at the wall right next to the window where he knew the king currently was. "Oh for goodness sake what the hell has he gone and done now" he muttered to himself as he grabbed his sword and ran out of the room. Running down the corridor he ran into hew "what ever you do, do not approach your master at the moment" hew went to ask why but Tristain held up a hand to halt him. "The king has angered him greatly I and headed to find out what has happened, but I fear for anyone with out magic who approaches him at the moment. I'll send word to you when it is safe for you to resume your duties." Hew stood there shocked as the knight ran as fast as he could down the corridor and out of site. The servant stood there rooted to the spot. That had been the first time he had seen the unshakeable knight worried. He decided he needed to find his masters cousin and sister.<p>

"What did you do?" Arthur spun round from where he had been talking quietly to Sir Leon and sir Percival at hearing the angry words. "Sir Tristain, surely that is no way to speak to your king" Leon said puzzled, Tristain strode forward ignoring the two knights.

"Then what about as his future brother in law, hmm? How about then? Sir Leon that storm happening out side was caused by magic, and every lightning strike has been aimed at this room," he turned to the king. "So perhaps you would like to tell me why the prince has been so greatly angered that his instinctual magic is threatening to tear the citadel down, if you tell me then maybe I might, just might, be able to calm him down." Arthur slumped down in his chair and muttered something under his breath. Tristain raised and eyebrow at the king forcing him to repeat what he had said louder. "I might have told him that as prince it is his duty to provide an heir to the throne, to do so the child would have to be bared by a woman he trusted and respected more than any other, that is the druidic and magical way"

Tristain growled and for a brief moment his eyes ceased being their regular colour and turned the vivid blue of his mother's. "you supercilious, bumptious, self absorbed dollop headed clot pole!" the knight roared pointing at the king before he slumped into a chair his head in his hands there was a heavy silence for a while before he spoke again. "When I heard my sister had died it was the darkest day of my life, it was worse than the day we discovered our mother had cursed her." He paused and loosened his tunic and raised his sleeve he spoke quietly "not all of these are battle scars." He focused his attention back on the king. "But as hard as it hit me, it hurt Merlin a hundred times more so. He saw you kill her, he watched her slowly die and then he set her to rest in the lake, an act we now know changed her, her soul was saved by his act of kindness, sire I have scars but Merlin has wounds, wounds you have just coated in salt and prodded with a fiery hot poker. My lord I will always be a loyal knight to you, I beg of you never to question that, but if I may speak candidly, the very sight of you sickens me right now"

The knight stood up and walked out of the room to seek out the prince and hopefully calm him down.

Arthur sat in his chair at the head of the table feeling more tired than he ever had been. He turned to Leon, his ever faithful first knight only to see a look he never had seen before. Leon was looking at him disappointed. "Your father turned everyone close to him into pawns on chess board, I beg of you old friend, don't make his same mistakes." Sir Leon gave a half hearted smile to the king before also leaving the room. Arthur slumped forward on the table, angry at himself now. He had been so terrified at the prospect of his deranged sister claiming Camelot as her own that he had overlooked the intricacies of the situation, he had been a fool.

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><p>Merlin was sat in the empty physician's chambers surrounded by destroyed bits of furniture. His eyes had long ago turned gold and stayed that way, the storm raging out side ironically being the safest out let of his frustration. His magic had flooded the room and even out into the corridor out side he felt someone approach and was about to use his magic to push them away when he heard Tristain's voice inside his head. "Please Merlin let me in" when Merlin didn't answer he felt the knight walk through his magic towards the door, when the knight next spoke it was out loud and his voice cracked with emotion. "you are being incredibly selfish, you are not the only one effected by this, I have spoken to the king, I know what he has asked of you, it sickens me" the door opened by its self, Merlin was sat on the floor surrounded by splintered bits of wood, the knight went and sat next to his prince.<p>

"Merlin, the way he approached the subject was wrong, but he is a pendragon, tact is not one of their strengths" Merlin chucked. "but one day, one day soon I would be honoured to be your betrothed I would be more honoured to help raise a child with you" Merlin turned to see that Tristain was being entirely serious. "I can't supply you a child and until you learn how to play god and create a sentient being by yourself, you will need a woman, a female. If it wasn't for the kings gain, if it wasn't to secure your own place in Camelot and stop Morgan gaining the throne, would you consider turning to the closest thing to having a child with me?" Merlin didn't answer, but the fact the storm out side started to disperse showed that Merlin was starting to calm down again.

"It isn't just me though, Freya must have a say in anything like this, and I will not allow her to be used in a play for power, I wont" Merlin said as he leant into his boyfriend's side, Tristain smile. "Well then, perhaps that is what should have been said to the king. You know Arthur would never hope to hurt you." Merlin made a scoffing sound but Tristain carried on anyway. "You are his dearest friend. He loves you, even if he never would admit as much." Merlin sighed, he knew Tristain was right. He just needed to find a way of taking control of the situation, if it was his and Freya's decision then it wouldn't seam quite so calculated. "I know what to do now Tristain. I know how to fix this." Merlin said eventually as Tristain raised a sceptical eyebrow at the prince as he nodded to the still grey skies outside. Merlin sighed, and with a flash of golden eyes the skies cleared and the furniture started fixing its self. "Better, do you want to wait a while or" Tristain's words were cut off by Merlin leaning across and kissing him, "that, is not fair Merlin, you know I loos my train of thought when you" Merlin leant a cross and kissed his boyfriend again. He smiled and the both happy and indignant look on the knight's face, knights of Camelot were not good at being cut off.

"In answer to your question, I don't want to, but I think I need to deal with this now while I have courage" Merlin said, as he stood slowly. Tristain smiled and stood as well. he sent a worried glance at the young warlock to make sure he truly was ok, and only then did he place a comforting hand on the dragon lord's shoulder and walked with him towards the kings chambers.

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><p>Merlin paused outside Arthurs room raising his hand to knock then dropping it to his side, he repeated the action a couple more times before Tristain Leant around him and knocked on the door for him Merlin went to protest but saw the 'just-man-up-and-talk-to-him-I-have-other-places-to-be' look the knight was directing at him and, taking a deep breath, entered the room. "I've toped you already Eric I have no wish to." The king cut himself off when he looked up to see it wasn't his new manservant but Merlin. Arthur immediately started a very clumsy attempt at an apology, before Merlin finally spoke up. "Arthur!"<p>

"Yes Merlin"

"Shut up!"

"Yes sire"

Merlin smiled at the king's response before he walked over to the table where Arthur was sat and settled into a chair across form his blood brother.

"I still have not fully forgiven you for earlier, and you would do well to avoid me for the next few days." The warlock stated his eyes focused on the table. "You have no right controlling any part of my life, if I want you input or advice I shall seek it. However having had time to calm down I do agree that something needs to be done to stop Morganna getting her hands on the throne. So here is what is going to happen." Merlin took a deep breath as Arthur focused his attention on the prince.

"I am going to approach Freya with a respectful request, if and only if she agrees to carry my child will I go through with it, once the child is born he or she will be mine and mine alone unless Tristain agrees to marry me, they will not be yours and you will have no say in how they are brought up except for matters they will need to know of if ever they do inherit the kingdom. If she doesn't agree or something goes wrong you are to seek out an orphan and take them as your own child. That is my offer and my suggestion take it or don't but I will not waver." Merlin stood up and left the broken king to mull things over.

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><p><strong>those who are wondering 'new warlock' is Gilli, because he is now starting to realise his full potential, i liked the idea of the ringactually holding him back as a way for his parents to hide his true power, a way of protecting him. <strong>

**the 'old king' refers to what i saw as very uthur like behaviour from arthur. i wonder how many of you have guessed who merlin's kid will be *laughs manically* **

**update probably in a fortnight, my other story will be updated at some point over the next week. **


	11. the healer returns

**hullo, i have a cold. which sucks, but look! a new chapter! yey! there has been a slight time jump between last chapter. dont worry it isn't years like in the show. just enough time to hurry the polt along because i want daddy merli, and soon lol this chapter we bring back another guest star :D i think the title gives it away. **

**i don't own merlin. only my OC's**

**hope you like this chapter.**

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><p>Merlin rode back through the forest having been to see Freya. He was still feeling uneasy even now a month after he had spoken to her about Arthur's request. She had agrees, and had now been carrying his child for three weeks. He made regular trips to see her to make sure she and the child were ok. It amused her but she knew his concern was valid, she wasn't a human woman any more she was something else. She would give birth to a human child that much was certain but Merlin's magic would be needed to give the child a chance to live. Sir Ulrich had already stepped forward and offered to give his life so that the new born prince could live, word had been sent to his grandsons lord Malcolm and sir Leon, who had been meeting with his grandfather to get the old knight's affairs in order, over the years he had gained vast wealth and lands for his heroic service to Camelot.<p>

Merlin slowed his horse as he approached the gates of Camelot. There was a woman on a cart, a woman he recognised clearly. "Alice?" he asked as he came level with the cart, the lady turned her head to the side and saw her nephew. "Oh Merlin, I wasn't expecting to see you just yet" she said as she fiddled with the reins of her horse. Merlin could tell she was nervous. "You needn't be afraid, uthur is dead, by another's hand, and you need not fear punishment for events which were beyond your control." He voice gained an edge to it at his last statement. Alice smiled at her beloved's nephew, "why do I feel you need to take your own advice? You can not keep blaming yourself for what has befallen Gaius. That he is alive even if comatose speaks a lot of his force of will and devotion to those who dwell here." Merlin smiled at the kindly older lady. Ever since Freya had fallen pregnant Merlin had been trying to work out how Gilli had come to be, Gaius and Alice were both beyond traditional child baring age when his cousin was born. As if reading his mind Alice spoke up.

"Gaius and I were officially engaged to be married in the eyes of the new religion but had already promised ourselves to each other in the manner of the old religion. It turns out, magic wishes to survive even in the direst of times, your mothers family, magic runs deep in them, almost as deep as in your dragonlord father's. The magic fortifies them, keeps them younger for longer, have you ever seen Gaius hurt?" Merlin thought about her question, yes, he had seen Gaius thrown across rooms, tied to stakes, beaten and battered, but the old man stayed as strong and as steadfast as ever. Now he finally realised why, Gaius may look like an old man but inside and n his soul he was closer to Hunith's age. Merlin smiled at his aunt. "that is the other ting I meant to mention, up until now my mother and I have been doing what we can to keep Gaius comfortable and stable, if ever you have need call for me or Bellanor or your son. You are not alone, never feel that you are" Alice felt tears well up in her eyes, it had been years since Gilli left on his travels carrying a ring which had belonged to his step father, it wasn't until after he left that he discovered who his real father was, she had also not seen Bellanor for some time, she had been so alone and then isolated through fear by the Manticore but now finally she was safe, she was near her family again, and it felt right.

As they reached the citadel gates the guards stood to attention only relaxing when Merlin sent an amiable smile and vague wave of dismissal the guards smiled back. It surprised Alice how easily Merlin had slipped into his role as prince. She saw Merlin mutter something and felt a shiver of magic which was followed moments later by a group of knights lining up and forming a corridor for Alice to ride down to the castles entrance where the king stood in his full regalia. Merlin leant over in his horse to talk to his aunt. "I have a confession to make, I had an errand I had to run, there is an oracle and she is soon to give birth to my child, I timed my visit to her guessing you would likely be arriving now. So I could escort you and also so I could send word ahead to the king so he knew to get dressed in his proper cape and shiny crown" before she could ask any further questions the king called out to her companion. "Hey, Emrys! You forgot to end your spell genius! I can still hear what you are saying!" it was an oddly informal exchange but Alice was quickly getting the impression that Merlin and Arthur were not a normal prince and king. Merlin to his credit just shrugged and hopped off his horse which stood as still as a statue as soon as he had dismounted, Tristain stepped forward handing Merlin's crown over to the reluctant prince.

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><p>Merlin stepped forward towards the king, spinning around as he placed the crown on his head, he winked at Tristain before in unison with Arthur he announced "my lords, ladies and citizens of Camelot, today is a joyous day, today we gain a new court physician. One who was is, beloved by our dear friend Gaius." Merlin stopped speaking as Arthur continued. "She is aunt to the prince, and taught Gaius everything he knows, if anyone can keep up his good work and find a cure for him, it is she. It is Alice Springsong." Alice stepped down from he cart and walked over to the king, she spoke as she dipped into a deep curtsey "my lord I have done a great many dishonourable things in the past, I promise to repay the debt owed" Arthur smiled at her and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.<p>

"That you even feel the need to say that proves to me that you already have punished yourself more than anyone else could. Your quarrel was with my father, not me, he is dead now," Arthur paused realising there were others gathered. He leant on and whispered in her ear. "My father's last words were to trust in Merlin, and I do. He trusts you so I trust you, whole heartedly." She felt light headed at the ease of his forgiveness. Merlin interrupted the moment smiling widely as he motioned for her to follow him. "Gilli and Bellanor are already in your new chambers making sure you have everything you need. They will both be so pleased to see you" he set off through a net word of corridors and stairs as she followed behind him. "I'm sorry you missed my mother I'm sure she would have liked to see you again, she had to go back to Acetia though." Alice smiled at the memories she had of Hunith. "Did you know you created sparks when you were three days old? Bellanor had been crying in her crib next to you and you created multi coloured sparks that had her giggle, you mother and I rushed over to find that Bellanor's blanket had slipped and the poor child was cold, Hunith was so scared and proud of you, even at three days old you were protecting others, of course as she carried the two of you over to the fire Bellanor's eyes went gold and the flames sprung up to full heat," Merlin paused at the door to Alice's new chambers.

"It is such a shame things couldn't have been different, I am sure with her by my side I'd have gained control of my power sooner, and she could have come with me to Camelot aiding me in my destiny. As it is now." He knocked lightly on the door and opened it only to be knocked back into the corridor by a blur that turned out to be his sister, she hugged him fiercely "I hear my nephew is doing well as is the mother" she said happily Merlin went to answer but his sister interrupted him with an excited squeak before she enveloped her aunt in a hug. "Alice! You made it!" She called over her shoulder. "Gilli! Your mother's arrived!" Gilli emerged from what used to be Merlin's room he was covered in dust and cobwebs hung from his hair. He smiled at his mum

"Mother, it is good to see you, I'm sorry I wasn't there to greet you but someone" he looked at Merlin. "Forgot to have servants clean his old room." Merlin rolled his eyes at his cousin. "As my cousin and right hand man, you do realise you have the right to order servants your self, if you so choose, lord Gilli."

Gilli rolled his eyes at the prince, "I keep telling you not to call me that." He shook the dirt off and used magic to condense it. A small rock like ball formed and he threw it towards Merlin before Bellanor intercepted by incinerating it with a ball of flame. The cousins laughed before Gilli stepped forward and embraced his mother happily, Bellanor skipped over and joined in, hugging the woman who raised her close, Merlin stood to the side not wanting to interrupt the reunion. Alice noticed his hesitance and shooed her son and niece away happy tears in her eye, she moved over and pulled Merlin into a tight hug speaking quietly into his ear. "My greatest regret in life is that Gilli never knew his true father and that I could not be here to care for Gaius, I know, I have seen what a joy it was for him to have you here, family, companionship. Thank you my boy, thank you." Merlin smiled happily. The moment ended with a knock on the door, it was Sir Leon.

"I'm sorry sire, but there has been an accident, one of the new blacksmiths was trying to get a boy to use magic to heat his furnace the child was in experienced and the man has been burned." His eyes flicked to Alice then back to Merlin, while he was a knight of Camelot and not supposed to show fear he knew Merlin had caught the hesitation in his voice. Alice dug out some jars from her bag before turning to the knight. "Tell me sir, what is Arthur's true stance on magic? I can clearly see he has at least three powerful magic users within his court." Sir Leon paused briefly before answering.

"He is still weary of it but Merlin and Bellanor have both proven to him that in the right hands it can be used for the betterment of all, he tolerates it mostly but does not trust it blindly." He looked out the door nervously. "Forgive me sire but we must hurry, I don't think the man will last long, he's not." The knight looked out the door and started moving away, Bellanor shot her brother a worried glance, she had heard what the dragon did to Leon, what Merlin had to heal. She may not know the knights as well as her twin but even she could sense the knight's fear, he was a knight of Camelot who had survived dragon fire and shrapnel melted into his flesh, but he had spent years training to survive torture and battle wounds this blacksmith had not.

Alice hurried after the knight with Merlin at her side. "Lead the way sir knight, for I am about to show again what can be done with magic when it is put to healing." Leon flinched, in his stride, Merlin caught up with his aunt. "Alice, I regret to say the knight has already had to witness that." She looked at her nephew with a puzzled expression on her face. They turned into a corridor as the knight looked behind him, "when the great dragon attacked Camelot a select group of knights rode out with Arthur and Merlin, of those knights I was the only one to survive, but the life I was left was worse fate than death, I was caught by the dragons fire, it incinerated my cape, scorched my helm, melted my chainmail into my skin and burned my whole body, it took me a day to travel the half hour back to Camelot" he kept walking letting the full horror sink in. Alice raised a hand to cover her mouth as her eyes swept over the knight assessing his movement to check for injuries, and she found no sign.

Merlin spoke finally, his voice full of regret and pride, "I failed to stop the dragon in time, I could not use magic to help him. But a time came when Arthur revealed that he knew of my magic, he knew and did not wish to see me hung, I grew frustrated and the first thing I thought to do was heal Leon. It worked sort of, but there must be balance and it took a lot out of me and I didn't heal all of him, I'm so sorry Leon" the knight turned round and took the prince by the shoulders. "Enough my friend. You saved me, you saved us all, and you did it in the shadows, the hurt it must have caused having to lie to us all, living in fear of death for simply helping, no you didn't heal all of me, yes I still have a few faint scars on my back, and one on my neck, but I am healthy and alive enough to fight, and that is thanks to you. Any injuries to do with fire and burns will always remind me of what it was like to live like that, but I choose to use that pain to push harder to do my duty to Camelot, to you the prince and to Arthur my friend and king." Merlin nodded before he looked out the nearest window.

"This accident where did it happen?" he asked, Leon pointed towards a small stone hut at the end of a row of buildings. Merlin held out his hand. "Alice take my hand and hold tight, Leon take her other hand." The knight did as asked before he could ask why Merlin's eyes went gold and the prince stated simply "this may hurt" suddenly Leon felt the prince touch the stone wall and felt his blood go as cold as that stone the world went grey briefly before his blood boiled and he felt the cool air of the lower town hit him like a bolder. He blinked a couple of times getting his bearings, he looked up to the citadel and saw the window they had been next to in the distance, he looked to his side and saw Merlin helping Alice back to her feet, and picking up her bag for her. "We just travelled through the stone didn't we?" Leon asked the warlock, Merlin simply nodded, as he walked into the forge. Leon walked forward and held the door open for Alice.

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><p>"You stupid, stupid man! Next time try something less advanced!" Merlin shouted at the hurt blacksmith who was clutching a severely burnt arm and had a look of agony on his face. Alice slapped the prince on the arm and tutted at him before setting to work. "Berate him later nephew, now if you won't help me heal him kindly go and check on the boy." Merlin rolled his eyes and left the room with one last glare at the blacksmith. Alice turned back to the man. "My nephew knows a lot I'm sure you will all have heard the rumours of his magic and power, he worries for his people." The injured man looked at her puzzled, "so he does have magic?" she nodded as she picked up a crystal and placed it against the man's burn.<p>

"No, he doesn't have magic, he is magic, I guess you could say magic has him, he has only ever used it for good and for protecting Camelot, and it was he who inspired the king's weary acceptance of magic. There is a long way to go before those with magic are free again, but we have finally been given the chance to prove we can do good as well as harm." She smiled sadly before she patted the man on the arm. He looked down to see only a slight barely noticeable scar on his arm where moments ago there had been an angry burn. He smiled at her and thanked her. Merlin walked back in holding hands with the young boy who had caused the accident. He let go of the hand as he crouched down next to the boy pointing at the blacksmith and whispering something the boy smiled widely and ran over towards the furnace which had gone cold. "next time you force your child labour to light your furnace using magic, try something less dangerous sir, like a spark" he nodded at the boy who shouted "_**sparks!**_" in the old tongue, tiny little sparks shot out of his hand and gathered in the driest part of the furnace a fire leapt up and the furnace burned strong, Merlin smiled, at the blacksmith and his young apprentice.

"Magic is not all about power and strength sometimes it is the little things at last the longest, and the powerful that are the most beautiful." He held out his hand his eyes glowering gold. A bright blue flame leapt up in his hand and formed the shape of a galloping unicorn. He smiled and sent it galloping around the room it brushed against the blacksmiths leg, as bright as the fire was it wasn't unbearably hot. Merlin chuckled "_**I shine, not burn.**_ I shine, not burn." He said smiling as the flame unicorn faded into the air. The blacksmith shook the prince's hand. "Thank you sire thank you. I swear I will never forget your sage advice and I shall never ask too much of my youngest apprentice again." He turned to Alice, "and thank you ms for healing me I will never forget what you and your magic prevented." Alice smiled at him.

"I am the new court physician, it was a pleasure to heal you sir, for with out hard working men like you the knights would have no armour, the farmers would have no tools, the wheels would have cogs." She smiled once more before leaving with Merlin, sir Leon was still outside waiting, Alice rummaged in her bag a moment before she produced a clear blue crystal and handed it to the knight. "Here, its magic will calm and order your mind when needed, sleep with it next to your bed. Or carry it in a pouch." Sir Leon smiled and thanked her, the both of them edging away when Merlin went to touch the wall and travel through the stone again he looked at them puzzled Sir Leon smiled. "Oh no, once was enough my friend" Alice simply nodded linking arms with the knight as they headed back to the castle, Merlin shrugged took a deep breath and touched the wall disappearing.

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><p><strong>alice is back! and leon still has fire issues. also, expectant father merlin doesn't like silly blacksmiths lol <strong>

**also,as you might have guessed, merlin may not mind his new trick of traveling through stone but others are not so keen on it. **


	12. a prince, a vanguard

**not even going to bother saying sorry because sorry and apologising wouldn't cover the fact that i haven't up dated this in far to long. so instead.**

**i still don't own merlin. i own my oc's though. i hope you are still reading this because its about to get interesting...**

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><p>Arthur sat on his throne and drummed his fingers on the throne, today was the day Merlin's child was due, it had only been six months but Freya had said her magic would speed the process up. he kept glancing nervously at the door. He was expecting Bellanor or Alice to walk in with news of his nephew or niece's birth. What he wasn't expecting was for Sir Lancelot to burst through and tell him he needed to get down to the training field. He sprung up grabbing his sword belt and fastening it following the knight. "What is it Lancelot? What's happened?" Lancelot kept running. He glanced over his shoulder a worried look in his eyes. "A sorcerer has beached the walls and is currently challenging Merlin to a duel. he has already harmed three knights in his determination." Arthur cursed under his breath he had known it was only a matter of time before the wider magical community found out about Merlin's position. He ran faster wanting to get this done with. Lancelot matched his pace, worry for his oldest friend evident in his expression.<p>

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><p>Merlin stood staring at the man in front of him. He had messy dark blonde hair, dark green eyes, a scattering of scars along his arms and wore a patchwork of leathers. He looked formidable, Merlin sighed. "so despite every druid I have ever encountered calling me Emrys and a dragon telling me I am Emrys, you still believe me not to be?" he asked the man. His opponent scoffed and pointed at him "no one so skinny and weak looking could ever be king of magic, you are just a farm boy who got lucky. No, I peregrine cross am Emrys, I am certain of it. King Arthur gave others a chance to prove they were the once and future king, I see no reason why you should not to the same, no reason other than perhaps you know you are a charlatan." Merlin rolled his eyes, he had expected someone to challenge him eventually, he would be insulted if not for the fact that he knew with out doubt he was Emrys, instead this man's posturing and preening just made him want to laugh. He noticed Arthur arrive with Lancelot and gave them a wave, neither of them seamed particularly amused.<p>

Making up his mind the warlock prince stepped forward. "Of course you raise a valid point, the one about others being given a chance, but you are wrong I am absolutely certain I am Emrys, king of magic. So I propose a duel, if you win I will swear servitude to you and name you Emrys, but if I win you are to serve me without complaint and spread the word that you have found the one true king of magic." Peregrine huffed at that.

"Do you take me for a fool? I don't like the sound of those terms I will never serve under a man like you, you are weak." Merlin smiled goofily, and let out a soft laugh,

"Well then you shouldn't have anything to worry about Mr. Cross." He kept smiling until the sorcerer nodded and they shook hands before moving to duelling positions. Arthur moved to stand next to Tristain who was watching completely transfixed.

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><p>It was Peregrine who made the first move shouting a spell which created a sword of ice which he used to stab and slice at Merlin who just dodged the blade calmly. Suddenly a swirling disk of fire spread from his hand and formed a literal shield of fire. The look of surprise which crossed peregrine's face did not go unnoticed. As his sword evaporated his eyes went gold and he muttered a spell that caused the earth to shift and form a fist which flew at Merlin who flung his hands out and uttered a spell of his own which forced the earth back. they continued fighting Merlin deflecting everything his opponent threw at him, it was after about five minuets of continual high octane fighting that Merlin saw his sister arrive in the distance, he let out a low growl his eyes going gold as time slowed down and he waved a conjured ice golem of peregrines' making aside like it was a leaf on the wind. "Enough! I have more important things to do. Do you want to know why I haven't given any one a chance to challenge me? The only one out there whose power comes close to mine is known to prophecies and he is certainly not Emrys, you want to know how someone so seemingly weak as me could be Emrys?" Merlin paused and took a step forward his eye still burning a bright gold. "I am magic, magic is me, I don't need muscle like you I don't need ice swords and earth fists, I don't need ice golems. I am life, I am death and I am quite possibly immortal, I don't need to be physically imposing." He took another step towards his opponent whose eyes were focussed on the warlocks golden ones. he felt it now, the endless power within Merlin waiting to escape.<p>

Peregrine was about to say something when Merlin pointed his hand at the ground and then raised it, he knew a spell had been cast but did not know what it had been. Suddenly a wall of wood sprung up around the visiting sorcerer then a canopy of green spread out over him everyway he turned there was wood, he pounded against one of the trunks and an apple fell on the ground next to him, he heard Merlin talking from outside his living prison. "The apples from the trees will sustain your strength and health, you can escape but escape will only be possible when you have leaned humility and patience. The canopy will give you shelter, and the wood will keep you warm. I have let you live, be grateful" Merlin finished his speech and marched past the king and his lover and broke into a run towards his sister.

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><p>"So?" he said as he reached Bellanor, she smiled at him hugging him close.<p>

"You are a father." she said happily as she hugged him tighter, he laughed with glee.

"What is it?" he asked his sister who laughed at her brother's choice of words. She took a step back,

"it's a child Merlin, a healthy beautiful child" he rolled his eyes at her and glared at her, she knew exactly what he had meant but was choosing to be vague. "It's a boy, brother, a son! He is the cutest thing I have ever seen!" she said as she hugged him again.

"Really? A son? A boy? Wow, oh my, I'm a father, a father!" Merlin turned towards the king and gathered knights of the round table, "I'm a father!" he shouted and the knights all cheered while Arthur and Tristain ran towards them it was Arthur who arrived first and swept his blood brother into a tight hug before he released the warlock and pushed the euphoric warlock towards the approaching knight who picked the prince up and spun him round the both of them laughing, Bellanor put an arm round the king,

"you're an uncle Arthur, Merlin may not have fully forgiven you yet but trust me once he see's his son, all will be forgiven." Arthur couldn't help the happy grin that spread across his face. Sir Percival approached with four horses and passed the reigns to the four of them. Merlin thanked his friend and rode towards the lake where his new son was waiting.

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><p>Alice had wrapped the baby in a warm blanket and Freya had returned to the lake that gave her strength. the child was currently gurgling happily in a crib formed of sand next to her while Freya sat with her toes dipped in the lakes water, she had her face raised to sun entranced by the calm presence next to her. It was peaceful, well it was until she heard four horses thundering up. Instantly she was on her feet and the lakes water swelled in waves ready to snatch any threat to her or the infant and throw them into the murky depths. As she turned the water settled down when she saw who it was that was arriving. Merlin and Tristain ran over to her and the both of them hugged her tight Merlin moving away towards where his son rested, he picked the baby up gently. "Merlin dear perhaps Tristain should hold the child? We all know how clumsy you are." Freya said still half hugging her brother, Merlin raised an eyebrow. "Freya I am not going to drop the baby."<p>

Tristain nodded at his boyfriend's words.

"he's right sister, besides, he is far less clumsy these days, also if he does drop the baby I'm sure his magic will save the child" Freya let out a squeak of alarm and strode over to Merlin holding out her arms to receive the child, Merlin's shoulders sagged and he used his magic to float the child over to Freya.

"so does he have a name yet?" Merlin asked her, she shook her head and looked up at him.

"I didn't want to name him here, with out his fathers input." Behind them Arthur smiled at the choice of words, Freya had just referred to Tristain and Merlin as the child's parents. Merlin suddenly clapped his hands. "Your grandfather!" he said as if it was a question and an answer, Freya and Tristain both looked at him like he was mad.

"Merlin dear it helps if you let the rest of us hear the whole sentence." Tristain said as his sister slapped him on the shoulder, the baby squirmed in her arms so she started rocking from side to side.

Merlin cleared his throat again. "your grand father was the closest thing either of you had to a role model growing up, when your mother cursed you and you had to leave you went to him, yes he locked you in his dungeon Freya, but he fed you and treated you well" Merlin turned to Tristain. "When your father trained you to assassinate your grand father, he didn't have you hanged for attempted murder he gave you his best armour and horse and," Tristain cut him off, stepping forward looking annoyed,

"And he stripped me of my title and banished me! That man never had any great love for us abominable grandchildren!" The baby started to cry at the raised voices, Merlin stepped forward his voice calm. "no he didn't have great love, but he did have compassion, I agree he had an odd way of showing it, but he didn't just banish you, he told you to reclaim the sullied family name, he gave you papers which would gain you respect as a hedge knight, he gave the both of you a slim chance to live, but that is what it was, a chance." Tristain sagged, breathing heavily now the fight had been knocked out of him by Merlin's faultless logic. He looked at Freya who nodded at her brother, yes, they would name the child after their grand father, and they would give him a name to live up to, a name to make his own.

Arthur moved over towards them finally speaking up. "so what is the new prince of Camelot called" he said a huge grin on his face. Freya passed the baby over to her brother before he spoke up. "Sire I present to you prince Agrivane, son of Emrys, son of the lakes, heir of Camelot" Freya placed a gentle hand on the infants forehead and whispered a spell, her eyes turned a glacial blue before turning the now normal dark murky green. She smiled at Merlin before kissing her brother on the cheek, she started moving back into the lake. She turned to look at Merlin. "I can not raise him, I need you to raise him right." She turned to her brother. "Tristain I know I can trust you to be a good father to the prince, I can't be his mother but know that if ever he needs council he can come to the lake he can come to me" Tristain nodded before he called back to her,

"I will be there for him, you have my word sister." She smiled and them the lake's water engulfed her and she disappeared beneath the surface. The infant prince gurgled and hiccoughed his eye went wide at this new sound and Merlin smiled happily.

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><p>Bellanor leant over once they were back on their horses whispering to her brother who was still protectively holding his son. "You look so happy" she said smiling at him, he turned to her trying to keep a straight face.<p>

"of course I'm happy, its been two hours and he hasn't blown anything up yet" Bellanor laughed at the reference to their first few hours, Merlin had caused all the wood in the fireplace to explode into flame while Bellanor had caused the grain on the table to burst into life leaving Hunith with a fully grown corn plant in the middle of the room. It had been that incident that made Hunith make the heartbreaking decision to send Bellanor away with Alice to protect the twins.

The two twins' started muttering to each other while the king rode alongside his knight. "You really love him don't you" he said conversationally to Tristain who spluttered for a moment before answering.

"I promise I would never defile his honour, nor he mine, we are perfect gentlemen, I also understand that now he is a prince and father of the second in line, he will probably have to marry a princess for the sake of Camelot." Tristain realised he was starting to ramble on so stopped himself. The king was looking at him like the knight was a simpleton.

"You really are an idiot Tristain. You are one of my most trusted knights and Merlin is my blood brother. Normal rules don't apply. I am not my father I understand that you can't force someone to marry for convenience instead of love. When the time comes all of Camelot will welcome your union." the knight laughed at the king's words and nodded in acceptance, he checked to see if Merlin and Agrivane were ok before the group all sped up towards Camelot.

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><p>When they arrived back in Camelot they were greeted by Arthurs select knights the knights of the round table, Lancelot smiled happily up at his oldest friend as the prince rode past clutching the new prince. The rest of the knights all formed a line either side of the riders' Gwaine predictably found himself walking next to Bellanor. She glanced at him before rolling her eyes and focusing on the road ahead, she couldn't help the smile that spread over her face when she saw Gwen waiting where Arthur normally would have been, in the spot the monarch stood to welcome people to the kingdom, the sorceress's friend looked so right in that spot. Gwen saw them approach and ran down the steps her maid following close behind. Merlin leant down and passed his son carefully over to Gwen who gazed lovingly at the tiny newborn. Merlin dismounted and waited a few seconds before taking the small wiggling bundle from the future queen.<p>

"He's beautiful Merlin" Gwen said quietly as they walked up the steps, he turned to his dear friend and smiled.

"He really is isn't he? Yes we are talking about you Agrivane." the baby in question was gurgling happy and trying to grab at the air, one of Arthurs councillors walked towards the small group and the change was instant. the child started to wail and cry and thrash about, the council member paused and took a step back looking puzzled. Merlin growled at the man who beat a hasty retreat. "Alice get him to you're quarters, I think he needs feeding." Alice nodded and took the child from his father. Arthur looked confused. "Won't he need his mother for that?" the young king asked. Merlin laughed at his blood brother,

"Agrivane is actually being sustained by magic until he can eat solid or mushy food. Freya warned me it would happen Alice has set up crystals and wards to draw healing magic towards his crib to 'feed' him." Arthur nodded at that.

"Tristain, when you are ready I think we should get engaged." Merlin said out of the blue causing the knight in question to stumble into the wall.

"Merlin, love, that isn't the sort of thing you just drop into casual conversation"

Gwaine snorted a laugh at that, earning a glare from Merlin. Tristain smiled at the wayward noble, "Gwaine I know commitment makes you laugh but there is a time and a place" Tristain's eyes sparkled with mirth as he pushed his boyfriend away down the corridor.

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><p><strong>'and once more the balence is restored to nature" i'm not sure what that means, but in this case it means agrivane is once more arthurs nephew, and (possibly) a future knight of the round table. <strong>

**yes, i am going to be having fun with 'protective dad' merlin. it may not seam like it, because i am making most of this plot up as i go, but i do have plans and i already know how this will end :D and agrivane's part is only just beguining.**

**next chapter up at some point. hopefully sooner rather than later, but i'm not going to insult your inteligence by giving an exact deadline because lets face it i'd probably miss it lol.**

**review? please? pretty please?**


	13. change

**um, this is awkward. computer broke. alot. and then it took ages to fix it. so as a peace offering i give you this chapter and another tomorrow. PLUS another chapter of one of my other storys. hopefully computer will co-opperate now, HOPEFULLY. **

**on a tangent i dont kown merlin and this chapter is sickeningly fluffy. i do not appologise for that.**

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><p>12<p>

Arthur stood over the crib containing his nephew. Merlin was off in a corner of the physician's quarters speaking in hushed tones to his aunt. Alice had settled well into Camelot and Merlin's assessment had been right, her quest to redeem herself and prove to people that magic could be used for good. She had healed almost all of Camelot, in half the time of a regular physician. Arthur leant over and withdrew a little wooden dragon from under his cape and rested it on the side of the crib, the baby locked his eyes on the toy and they shifted from green, to blue, to gold. The dragon floated through the air settling, hovering above the baby, Arthurs face broke into a huge grin and he shouted out to Merlin "Merlin! Merlin! He's doing magic he's doing magic." His voice was so full of glee than Merlin couldn't help the chuckle that escaped and he ran over to see his son gurgling and reaching out towards the dragon that was still hovering above him. Merlin reached over and picked up his son whose attention switched instantly to his father he started tugging at Merlin's tunic. "Who's a clever little warlock huh?" Merlin muttered Agrivane let out a little hiccough which coincided with his eyes changing colour again. "That's right it is you." Merlin tweaked the infants nose as his son renewed his efforts to tug at his fathers tunic Arthur stood off to the side smiling at the scene, he was still getting over the fact that Merlin was not nearly as clumsy as he had made him self out to be, and now here he was holding a tiny little baby. Arthur was so lost in his own thoughts that he hadn't realised Merlin had walked over to him.

Merlin held the baby out to the king causing Arthur to look panicked. "Oh come on, he is the heir of Camelot I think you should get used to holding him and interacting with him." Arthur shook his head.

"No! No, no, no. what if I drop him"

"You won't drop him"

"What if I do?"

"Have I dropped him?"

"Well no, but…"

"But nothing, I am far clumsier than you"

"Well yes, but…"

Merlin sighed and just shoved his son against Arthurs chest before letting go, Arthur's arms flew up and caught the baby hugging his nephew to him, he readied himself to shout at Merlin only to see his blood brothers eyes were golden evidently he had never actually 'let go' of his son, just physically. "See instinct, oh did I forgot to mention I was ready to catch him with magic?" Merlin commented calmly while his aunt rolled her eyes.

"no Merlin you didn't" Arthur looked down at his nephew close up for the first time and was stunned at how beautiful the child already was, he shared his fathers colouring but had slightly browner hair. His eyes would be disconcerting with their changing colour if not for the fact that they held an innate kindness to them which was clearly inherited from both parents. "Will his eyes always do that?" Arthur asked eventually looking across at Merlin and then Alice. It was the latter who answered. "at the moment with magic sustaining him his eyes seam to be shifting between the gold of Merlin's magic, the dark green of Freya's magic, and as that is happening the pigment is having trouble deciding weather to be brown or blue, I think once he is eating regularly and not sustained by magic his eye colour will settle, but." Alice paused and Merlin stepped forward resting a gentle hand on the baby's head. "I think, when using magic his eyes will go gold like mine, but I think also depending on what he is doing they may turn dark green."

"Right so even when he is older he will have odd eyes?" Merlin glared at the king and Arthur laughed at his prince. "he is a beautiful baby and will no doubt be a handsome young man, but Merlin, people don't normally have eyes that shift colour regularly, it isn't a bad thing it just means he is special."

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><p>Tristain had snuck into the room while the others were distracted he snuck up behind Merlin and wrapped his arms around the prince resting his chin on Merlin's shoulder. "it is, also good tactically, if he is facing an enemy in later life the very fact that his eyes can become like my sister's or like Merlin's will be intimidating enough, add to that he will have been trained in the use of his magic and use of a sword form an early age will make my son a formidable king." Merlin turned his head towards Tristain moving away so he could see the knight more clearly, "your son? Are you saying what I think you are?" Merlin felt butterflies in his stomach, was Tristain really saying he was ready to be proposed to? Tristain just nodded his head. Arthur had handed the baby prince to Alice and placed a hand on her shoulder watching prince Merlin and sir Tristain's interaction.<p>

Merlin took a deep breath before he got down on one knee, shaking he reached into his pocket and with a shaky breath began to speak. "Sir Tristain, would you do me the honour of becoming my husband?" Tristain stood in silence taking a couple of shaky breaths of his own to stoop the tears of joy that threatened to fall in a most un-knightly manner. "Yes, Emrys king of magic, yes." Merlin smiled and leaped to his feet lifting the knight up and spinning him around, as he set Tristain down the knight picked him up and spun him round, they both settled and laughed as Merlin placed the ring on his finger.

Arthur stepped forward and clasped hands with Tristain pulling the knight into a half hug. "Welcome to the family my friend, welcome." Tristain smiled against the king's shoulder before he took a step back and bowed slightly. "It is an honour milord and I promise to be the husband your brother deserves." Arthur let out a laugh.

"Setting yourself quite a task there I imagine the king of magic requires an equally impressive consort, I have no doubt it is a challenge you will rise to Tristain"

Alice had been standing silently off to the side but now she stepped forward, unashamed of the tears that fell down her face. She smiled at the knight and then in a quite voice said. "I guess you should meet your son sire" she passed Agrivane over to Tristain who cradled the baby lovingly. From loosing his entire family he world he now found himself with a new family and a step son to care for, and the love of a good honest man, finally his trouble past could be put behind him and he could dedicate himself fully to aiding his fiancée and future brother in law in their quest to unite Alboin under the banner of peace. Finally he was alive.

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><p><strong>arthur has an heir, merlin has a fiancee and tristain has a family who aren't trying to kill each other constantly! also i love baby aggypops :D <strong>

**cute.**

**next chapter up tomorrow. and it has special guests! **


	14. visiting family

**holyfuggingmuffinsticks! its a chapter, and a story, being updated, when i said it would be! don't faint! please don't faint, if you faint you won't be able to read it. um the title says it all, hehe.**

**i don't own merlin. i own my OC's. also, my dyslexia has a brain fart every timei try and write the land where merlin is from so acetia it is, because its close enough. hope you like this.**

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><p>visiting family.<p>

Merlin and Tristain stood at the gates to Acetaela the captitol city of Acetia, behind them Bellanor was cradling her nephew in her arms on a white horse. Merlin looked across at his fiancée and smiled before kicking his horse into motion again. Even so relatively soon after the change of ruler you could see the differences, what had once been a dark lifeless fortress barracks was now a town simmering with anticipation and hope, traders called out form stalls along the main street and knights wearing dark blue cloaks with a crest consisting of a silver falcon carrying an oak leaf, walked through the streets but talking to the people asking if they required help, Merlin even saw one laughing with a baker. These men would once have been forced to over tax these people, to threaten them in the name of the king. One of the knights looked up at the approaching horses and saw the crown prince of Camelot on one of them. A knight rode beside him, behind them both was the lady Bellanor. The knight signalled to a couple of his comrades, walking over towards the small party.

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><p>"Sire, it is an honour to meet you, please allow me and my companion to escort you to the castle, word has been sent on ahead to the steward and his advisor." Merlin nodded his head in the appropriate manner before following the knight. Merlin was looking ahead at the dark castle which had been built form dark grey stone, large banners were draped from the roof in the same blue and with the same crest, but next to them was the pendragon crest, what surprised Merlin was there was a third smaller banner as well this one a dark oak leaf green with a bronze dragon on it the dragon was in stood in profile with its wings up, beneath it was a small motto that Merlin couldn't read from where he was. He moved to look at the people he was passing and for a moment was surprised to see each and every one of them bowing or curtseying low for him some glancing up at him in awe. Uncomfortable with such looks he turned to Tristain hoping to find an ally instead he found his lover smiling teasingly at him.<p>

"Well you are quite awe inspiring my love, besides, you are the Acetian born prince of Camelot, and future king of magic. Surely you realised that would instil hope and joy in the hearts of many." Merlin rolled his eyes, and laughed when Agrivane let out a high pitched chuckle. "Our son is laughing at you Tristain. He thinks your being an idiot." Bellanor stifled a laugh as she started muttering quietly to her nephew. Agrivane chuckled again before hiccoughing and causing a tiny ball of blue light to form above him, Bellanor shushed him and took a hold of the orb, extinguishing it. "Agrivane no, we don't do magic in public places yet." She whispered kissing his fore head. The baby in her arms gave her what was presumably supposed to be a glare of annoyance but it had about as much effect as one of Merlin's. Bellanor heard a gasp from up ahead and looked up to see the strangest of sights, the court yard of the castle which had once been mud and straw was now a vibrant oasis of plants scents filling the air. There were paved paths crossing the court yard where the horses rode down, on the steps up to the castle stood Lord Malcolm and Hunith. The twin's mother was wearing a simple dark green dress with her hair wrapped in a shawl of a similar colour. Merlin smiled, her style was exactly the same as it had always been but had been made smarter and more refined. She would be comfortable but appropriately dressed should dignitaries visit, she smiled at the new arrivals. Next to her Malcolm looked relaxed and confidant he stepped forward and shook Merlin's hand.

"Prince Merlin, welcome to the new Acetia." The steward said as he motioned for Merlin and his companions to follow them inside the castle, there were more banners spaced evenly down all of the corridors when they reached the throne room Merlin stifled a laugh, last time he had been in something of Cenred's it had been dark and intimidating, this throne room's walls had been washed with chalk making it bright and airy, the throne clearly new was simple but had a falcon carved into the top of it. The falcon's wooden eyes looked directly at anyone who entered. It offered both protection and a threat. While he was looking around the room he felt his mover moving around somewhere in his periphery. When he looked again he saw that she had scuttled past him and was now holding her grand son making cooing noises. "oh yes mother, ignore your son who you haven't seen in months, and your daughter who you have hardly seen at all, go straight for the gurgle-thing" he said sarcastically but with a smile on his face, Tristain slapped the back of the prince's head. "Merlin! Our son is not a thing! He is a prince of Camelot, and a vanguard." Hunith chuckled at the interaction before returning her attention to her grandson whose eyes were still shifting colour. "Tristain, why don't you ever use your natural eye colour?" Hunith asked suddenly focusing her attention on the knight, he shifted uncomfortably.

"When ever my eyes are their natural colour they remind people of my mother, they remind me of all the bad she did." he answered simply, Hunith moved towards him still carrying Agrivane, she whispered something and the baby's eyes settled on a startling blue.

"Tell me Tristain, what do you see when you look at this baby?"

"My son." He looked at Merlin. "Our son"

"What do you see when you look into his eyes?"

"Innocence"

"Can I tell you something? It may be hard to hear? I visited Gaius in Camelot a lot over the years, I knew Camelot before the purge. I knew Camelot when magic was free and Gaius cared for the weak and nimueh protected the defenceless. I remember your mother before her fall from grace." Tristain's jaw clenched at the mention of his vile mother. But Hunith kept smiling. "Her eyes used to be so full of calm reassurance, of hope. She tried to warn uthur but he didn't understand, she grew upset, and then angered by his lack of understanding. The anger festered, it became hate and rage." Tristain could feel his resolve starting to fail. "I know the evil she did, she killed my brother, before Merlin brought him back, but when I see your eyes and the eyes of my grand son, I am reminded of the beautiful woman that was, unless you change your way of thinking, I fear that your mistrust and hatred of your parents may cause your relationship with your step son to suffer, as long as you have the trust of Arthur and the love of my son you will never be what your mother was, your eyes will never hold her hatred, so again I ask why you don't ever use your natural eye colour." Tristain sighed before he took a deep breath and released the charm upon his eyes allowing them to turn vibrant blue. Hunith smiled happily and leant forward towards her future son in law and kissed him on the cheek.

"Right well now mother has stopped harassing my fiancée about his eye colour perhaps we could get back to normal?" Merlin said slightly impatiently, there was the briefest of awkward silences before Malcolm burst out laughing. "Merlin you sound more like a pendragon every time I see you." The steward said laughing again. He motioned for the small group to follow him into an adjoining council chamber. Hunith handed her grand son over to a maid who, escorted by a knight, went to put the baby in a crib crafted from crystals, smiling as her son watched the exchange carefully his stance showing he was ready to defend the prince. "Merlin relax, the prince will be perfectly safe in their care, there are matters which need discussing and the prince needs his rest." The mother said laying a hand on her sons arm and walking with him through the door into the council chamber.

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><p>The small chamber was dark and lit by candles, the same three banners hung from the walls. Merlin followed Malcolm over to the table. He looked enquiringly as Malcolm sat to the right hand side of the head of the table. "You are the prince Merlin, you sit at the head of the table, it is tradition and protocol for you to sit at the head. With the next ranking gentleman to your right and your um, well your wife to your left." Bellanor let out a snort of unladylike laughter earning a glare from Tristain. "Bella darling, manners." Hunith muttered quietly shooting her future son in law an apologetic smile. "Now Tristain I believe lord Malcolm just said the fiancée sits to the left." She added gently as Tristain did as suggested and seated himself facing Malcolm. "You are being very calm about the fact that Camelot's heir is living in sin and loving another man." He commented to the steward, Malcolm raised an eyebrow. "From what I hear druidic customs are different. You can only be living in sin if your religion believes it to be so, you and Merlin are both born of the old religion which was less, rigid. Love is love, and the two of you clearly love each other, if anyone gives you grief they will not just have Arthur to answer to, but the entire Camelot and Acetia army." Bellanor leant over and kissed Tristain on the cheek. "Not to mention an army of wyverns and an extremely protective dragon, and that's not counting your rather intimidating sister, whose glare could freeze the heart of the strongest man. Now I believe we had business to discuss?" she asked Malcolm who nodded and started talking.<p>

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><p>It was an hour later after possibilities of moving the border had been discussed and new sub laws prudent to Acetia had been passed, that Merlin finally asked the question he had wanted to ask. "What is the third banner?" Hunith laughed as the steward looked at Merlin like he was an idiot. "You mean you still haven't worked it out? Merlin, its yours, your banner, it is the vanguard crest and colours." Malcolm said smiling at the prince. Merlin looked across at his sister to see that she too was struggling not to cry tears of joy. Bellanor had never met her father, Merlin had only met ballinor briefly before his father died in his arms, neither of them had ever seen his crest neither of them had ever seen the man in his rightful place as a lord. They didn't think their mother had either.<p>

"It took me a wile but I finally remembered something ballinor had once shown me something he had once said." She reached into her dress and pulled a tattered bit of cloth. "He gave me this once when I had cut my hand working, I didn't know it at the time but it is a bit of his cape. I forgot about it and then he was chased off." Her eyes glazed over briefly as she remembered the past. "anyway I found it recently, soon before I came to Camelot, but then everything was happening and, no there is no excuse, I should have told the both of you sooner" Merlin smiled sadly at his mother, he knew she would have told them about Ballinor's crest sooner if there had been an appropriate time.

"Sire, if you don't mind me asking, what does the motto say? It is written in a script that none of us can actually read." Malcolm asked as he looked at one of the hanging green and bronze banners, "I'm not surprised, even mother with her faded knowledge of the old tongue would have trouble, its written in dragon speak. The shared language of dragons and dragon lords." Merlin read the motto and smiled, the words suited the man his father had been and he realised it applied to his entire family, even those who were not dragonlord blood. "It simply says 'I shine, not burn' you're probably wondering about the rest of the crest?" Malcolm nodded. Merlin closed his eyes and they could be seen glowing gold when he next spoke his voice had dropped an octave an Hunith gasped as she recognised the shift in the air, Merlin had just done something only the most accomplished dragon lords could do, he had accessed the shared memories of his ancestors not clear memories but snippets of knowledge passed down from father to son along with the gift with the fathers dyeing breath. He would now know all of the vanguard history. Merlin smiled and spoke. "The green is the colour of the vanguards first dragon. Bronze while less pretty than silver and gold is more useful, and closer to the rest of nature in colour, the dragon of our crest is standing ready to defend, tat is the vanguard way, first to defend through humble strength and grounded power." His eyes went gold as did Bellanor's and together the spoke the motto. _**"I shine, not burn"**_ a series of glowing orbs burst into life above the table before forming the shifting effigy of a dragon at rest. The siblings looked at each other and burst out laughing while the other three people occupying the room looked on in wonder.

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><p>Merlin stood at the top of the tallest tower of the castle alone with his thoughts he shifted his awareness slightly as he felt a presence brush against his magic. "Malcolm, good evening." The steward came and stood next to him looking out across to the horizon. "Good evening Emrys." He answered in his trade mark soft voice, Merlin smiled at the use of his druidic name. "Was there something you needed to talk to me about away form the others?" Merlin asked as he turned to look at the other man. Malcolm shifted uncomfortably his eyes shifting briefly to look into the distance. "How very astute of you sire, yes there was something I had wished to discuss with you, something I didn't want to trouble the others with yet." Merlin nodded and turned so he was facing the castle wall and Malcolm. "What is it? Will Arthur need to know?" Malcolm was surprised at how easily Merlin seamed to slip into royal mode. His tone kept that same unique merlinness but it was different somehow when he asked the question the phrasing of it left no choice but to answer him plainly and truthfully.<p>

"Have you or the king been to the periless lands recently?"

"No not since the phoenix eye debacle, why?"

"A patrol went near our border with it, they said there was a new bridge, they went to investigate and what they found, well. Merlin I think you need to see for yourself, I'll send escorts with your sister and fiancée back to Camelot." Merlin raised an eyebrow at Malcolm's words. "What will I find?" he asked in the same tone as before.

"Sire you will find the periless lands a different place, the skies are clear and plants are growing again. It's like a curse has been lifted." Merlin nodded slowly taking the words in, he tried not to show his growing un ease, the lands were tied to the fisher king's magic, as he had been poisoned and fatally wounded so had the lands, with him dead, surely the lands would be as well, that they were in fact springing back to life suggested they had latched onto another sorcerer and Merlin had a sinking feeling it was him.

Of course he couldn't tell Malcolm that, in fact he couldn't tell anyone, not yet, Merlin became aware that there had been a long pause, to long, between Malcolm speaking and him responding, "right, yes your right that does sound like something that I need to check out, especially if our enemies beyond it have discovered the same, if they do them a vicious war could break out, or worse, our enemy's could use the periless lands to march on us and we wouldn't know about it until it was too late." Malcolm nodded and with a slight bow of his head dismissed himself, once he was alone again Merlin allowed his head to fall into his hands. He had thought all he secrets were out, that he was done with lying to those he cared for, and now, now he was holding one of the most dangerous secrets he would ever had, the fate of Camelot rested on what he would sense in the periless lands.

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><p><strong>well? hunith makes an appearence! woohoo! <strong>

**and malcolm.**

**next time merlin goes to see what is happening in the perriless lands! exciting right!**


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